
Steve Howard talks about IKEA’s super-sized sustainability strategies at TEDGlobal 2013. Photo: James Duncan Davidson
After 25 years working in sustainability, Steve Howard made a surprising move: he went to work for IKEA. In today’s talk, he explains why by giving a sense of just how far IKEA is going to make sure it has a positive environmental impact.
Steve Howard: Let's go all-in on selling sustainability
“Sustainability’s gone from a ‘nice-to-do’ to a ‘must-do,’” says Howard in this bold talk. “It’s about what we do right here, right now, and for the rest of our working lives.”
Many companies have sustainability goals. But IKEA’s are quite radical. By 2016, the assemble-it-yourself furniture megastore — which is so much a part of our lives — will only stock LED bulbs. By 2020, IKEA stores will produce more energy than they use.
IKEA, what with its Swedish meatballs, is a part of the cultural conversation in a way few brands are. So could their sustainability efforts push the needle for others? Here, a collection of memes, homage websites, and fan-made videos that speak to how entrenched IKEA is in our lives.
The IKEA Monkey. Last year, a monkey wearing a coat was found wandering the aisles of an IKEA in Toronto. The people of the Internet jumped on board, creating an Ikea Monkey Twitter account, photoshopping the monkey into tons of photos, and tweeting with the hashtag #IkeaMonkey. On December 10, 2012, Canadian journalist Tom Podolec tweeted, “#IkeaMonkey is a Rhesus Macaque Monkey Approx. 7 months old. In good health; stressed. Jacket is wool and said to be his favourite.” The monkey’s owners were fined for having a prohibited animal.
The IKEA Song. What happens when you write a song about wooing a lady in an IKEA store? This video from singer/songwriter Brad Go.
Hot Malm. The best way to describe Hot Malm is as an “IKEA-themed porn parody site.” A pair of twin beds is captioned “Twin Blonde Malms,” a shot of a bed’s headboard reads “Hot Malm from Behind,” and “Check out the Pussy on this Hot Malm” refers to a cat on a bed. (MALM, remember, is an IKEA bedroom series.) Bonus: the Ikea Monkey sits in a corner of the website, with a speech bubble: “Feeling lonely? Click here now!”
“Fireflies” Parody in Ikea. And then there’s this, which a description would ruin, so…
If Ikea Made Instructions for Everything. A 2010 College Humor piece illustrates IKEA-style directions for creating a “HÖUSS,” “TRÜSST,” a “HÄDRÖNN CJÖLIDDER,” and more.
Herding Cats. IKEA itself can rival the cleverest parodists: in a 2010 experiment, the store released 100 cats into a UK store. Watch to the end—slow-mo shots of cats in IKEA are surprisingly moving.
Room 23. This quite remarkable four-minute short film, created in 48 hours as part of a contest in the Netherlands, imagines the lives of IKEA catalog models.
A store full of drama. And finally, we have to give it up to artist Guy Ben Ner. He shot this drama in IKEA (sans permission) … with his real family.
Comments (21)
s514565 commented on Nov 16 2013
So, I have never really been into looking up videos or anything so what exactly is a “Meme?”
These videos are really funny, by the way, and I like your take on IKEA.
Helche Silvester commented on Nov 10 2013
Reblogged this on Digital media literacy .
marauder_4 commented on Nov 4 2013
Haha wow, it seems there is an infinite source of memes and commentary on ikea. I’m not sure why so many people find it fascinating, but yeah some weird things come out of that company.
jessysjourneys commented on Nov 1 2013
Amazing post. Thanks a billion for introducing me to Stealing Beauty!
dottieday commented on Oct 29 2013
Reblogged this on Dot's Days and commented:
Make sure you scroll down to see the IKEA cats video – super!
victoriafc commented on Oct 28 2013
Ah IKEA, always inspiring quality memes!
I loved IKEA Heights, the soap opera filmed in a Califonia store: http://www.ikeaheights.com/
So tempting to recreate scenes when visiting my local store!
victoriafc commented on Oct 28 2013
Reblogged this on A Nordic Influence and commented:
Everyone can enjoy an IKEA meme
Catherine Dream commented on Oct 25 2013
On my gosh the cats <3
Christopher Eyles commented on Oct 25 2013
Reblogged this on Human Seasons.
nessiethecutie commented on Oct 25 2013
Reblogged this on Nessie the Cutie.
2chefs1home commented on Oct 25 2013
Now that’s a great post. The cats video is weird, the love song is hilarious and the ladies grabbed the camera from the mini drama was classic. They probably thought it was on sale.
Theresa That commented on Oct 24 2013
OMG this was amazing.
currankentucky commented on Oct 24 2013
I love the monkey clip, I remember it doing the rounds on media, great piece.
terioqueenbvintage commented on Oct 24 2013
the monkey in the jacket will always have my heart. <3
jusd commented on Oct 22 2013
Reblogged this on Jusd and commented:
Have fun..!
nabilgags commented on Oct 22 2013
Curiosidadesint commented on Oct 21 2013
Republicou isso em Curiosidades na internet.
nabilgags commented on Oct 21 2013
nabilgags commented on Oct 21 2013
nabilgags commented on Oct 21 2013