Did you know…?
IKEA’s crazy product names came about because of its owner’s disability.
There is nothing more fun that going through IKEA and shouting out the seemingly silly names of their products. But there is a very specific method to IKEA’s naming madness.
Naming products, instead of just giving them a code number, was the brainchild of founder Ingvar Kamprad. Product codes were always a problem for Kamprad; the founder suffers from dyslexia, so the numbers would just become a jumbled mess in his brain. Kamprad soon figured out that names were easier to remember than product codes, so he set out to give each product a specific name. He even devised an entire naming system: groups of products would receive a single type of name. For instance:
- Garden furniture pieces are named after Swedish islands
- Bookcase ranges are named for occupations
- Fabrics and curtains are given women’s names
- Bathroom articles are named after Scandinavian lakes, rivers, and bays
- Bed linens, bed covers, pillows, and cushions are named for flowers, plants, and precious stones
- Children’s items are given the names of mammals, birds, and adjectives (such as DUKTIG, which means well-behaved)
- Dining tables and chairs are given Finnish place names
- Upholstered furniture, coffee tables, rattan furniture, bookshelves, media storage, and doorknobs are named for Swedish places
- Beds, wardrobes, and hall furniture are named for places in Norway
- Curtain accessories are given mathematical and geometrical terms
This system has served the company well; however, some of the Nordic names—such as the Fartfull workbench and the Jerker desk—do give customers in English-speaking countries a bit of a chuckle.
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