Value Chain Management of Ikea

The services and products offered by IKEA provide value to its customers in various ways. For one, the products and services are very affordable. The products and services are not priced highly and therefore, the average customer can enjoy them. At the same time, the products are of high quality. From IKEA’s slogan “low prices but not at any price”, it is clear that the company prices its products lowly but that does not mean that the quality is compromised. IKEA satisfying its customer’s needs through providing them value for their money as they provide quality products that will last for a long time, and at affordable costs. The fact that the company has set the minimum acceptable standards for its wood, implies that it is also keen on quality and on the environmental impact of its action of making furniture ( Edvardsson, Enquist & Hay, 2006).

IKEA’s products like the PAX wardrobe, the BILLY bookshelf, the LACK table and the SULTAN bed, sold in IKEA store are to a large scale sourced from a global network of suppliers. To take the sliding doors of PAX wardrobe as an example, IKEA just sourced different parts of the door form different countries but within consideration of total cost. Table 1 shows an overview of 8 major component of the

IKEA is considered to be a low cost, high quality producer in the furniture industry, therefore it is important to

Today IKEA is progressing towards being one of the top furniture retailers in the world. In 2002, they served 286 million customers through 154 stores resulting in $12 billion in revenue. Although IKEA has several stores placed around the world, they are not always thought of as the most popular furnishing store in America. All the stores are self-service and are based on a do-it-yourself shopping experience. There are few contacts with customer service representatives within the stores, except for when the customer enters the transaction phase of their buying experience.

IKEA is the largest furniture retailer around the world. The current leadership position of the company provides considerable advantages in terms of the economies of scale and at the same time creating an entry barrier for new competitors. It is ready to achieve the target of EUR 50 billion annual sales by 2020.

IKEAs brand image is built on their long term strategic focus to produce products from sustainable materials in an aim to care for the environment and earth’s natural resources. This aligns with IKEAs vales to promote social, environmental and economic development. IKEAs concept of customers shopping for mass produced, standardised products in a ‘self-service’ environment allows for cost efficiency

IKEA has achieved success by offering customer value for functional designer products. The cost conscience attitude has worked in favor for IKEA amongst its target market.

At IKEA we design the price tag first and then build up the product to suit that value. IKEA product developers and designers work openly with suppliers to make sure that creating the low prices starts on the factory ground. They contemplate maximizing production tools, using raw equipments proficiently and applying mechanical innovations and the best potential design. It is all about making the most of our production process, keeping waste to a complete least and considering flat-pack transportation and self-assembly. IKEA of Sweden in Älmhult, Sweden, develops the total IKEA range.

By operating the business in Thailand (foreign market), IKEA adopt the strategy called “Think Global, Act Local” in the sense that IKEA maintains, applies and upholds their core values and cultures in their practices, while learning to adapt and understand the Thai culture and the Thai market in terms of needs, desires and wants of Thai people in general in order to survive and succeed.

IKEA’s supply chain has a global spread with growing sales and purchasing in all over the world. What makes its supply chain really success is that its stores are spread across many countries, that “it has 1220 suppliers in 55 different countries making its furniture and that the stores are supplied from 31 central distribution centres in 16 different countries or directly from suppliers” (Patrik Jonsson). In some cases, an IKEA store opening is a national event, with people sometimes travelling hundreds of kilometers to shop there.

IKEA is the largest furniture chain in the world, and in 2011 the Swedish company operated over 270 stores in 25 countries. In 2011 IKEA sales soared to over $35 billion, or over 20% of the global furniture market. Most of its stuffs believed IKEA will massive growth throughout the world in the coming decade because IKEA could provide what customer wanted: good design, and good made contemporary furniture with an affordable price. In one word, IKEA’s global approach focuses on simplicity, attention to detail, cost consciousness, and responsiveness in every aspect of its operations and behavior. (Jones, 2013)

IKEA’s supply chain has a worldwide spread with both bargains and acquiring On the whole significant areas of the planet. The organization works 33 conveyance centres What 's more 11 client dissemination centres which supply products on IKEA retail-stores. The organization likewise has 30 exchanging administration work places in 25 nations and 1,084 suppliers over 53 nations (IKEA, 2013). Of the 139,000 workers in IKEA, 14,500 for them partake in energizes purchasing, distribution, wholesale, Also related ranges (IKEA, 2013).

Title: Author: Supervisor: Purpose: The competitive advantage of IKEA and IKEA in China Zhi Li Lars Steiner The main purpose of this master thesis is to describe the IKEA concept and discuss the application in China. After research the history of IKEA, interview with the manager of IKEA store, and find the information from the web and thesis, use the theory of competitive advantage to describe the IKEA concept and the competitive advantage which is the way that IKEA used to

At the outset, it may be useful to characterise IKEA in terms of the characteristics of demand (also known as the four Vs, see Slack et al. p 20). First, IKEA is clearly a high volume operation – as indeed most international retailers are – which lends to systematising operations but which implies capital intensive processes and therefore cost considerations will be crucial. Second, IKEA offers a large number of products (up to 14000 depending on the country/store) so there is high variety in the

IKEA established itself as the largest furniture retailer in Sweden by the early 1970s by reinventing the wheel of furniture manufacturing at that time. Majority of furniture manufacturers in Sweden produced expensive products with designs that were basic or passed down generation to generation, additionally other manufacturers stores where located in downtown congested areas. IKEA’s strategies which consisted of low cost low priced furniture, brave intricate designs, self-assembly,