In late September, IKEA finally releases its first AR app developed with Apple—called IKEA Place—for iOS 11. The mobile app will let customers test how 2,000 pieces of furniture and other IKEA goods will look and fit into their homes before ordering in a huge leap forward for the world’s biggest furniture retailer.
Michael Valdsgaard, Leader Digital Transformation at Inter IKEA Systems, explained why augmented reality is a game-changer: “IKEA Place makes it easier to make buying decisions in your own place, to get inspired and try many different products, styles and colors in real-life settings with a swipe of your finger. Augmented reality and virtual reality will be a total game changer for retail in the same way as the internet. Only this time, much faster.”
Built on Apple’s new ARKit technology, IKEA Place “marks an important milestone in the IKEA digital transformation journey. IKEA is one of the first home furnishing brands in the world to bring this technology to people, shifting the way we purchase furniture in the future.
The app automatically scales products—based on room dimensions—with 98% accuracy. The AR technology is so precise that you can see the texture of the fabric, as well as how light and shadows are rendered on your furnishings,” IKEA says. Users will also have the option of capturing the setting in the app and sharing it as an image or a video with friends.
“ARKit gives us the opportunity to help shape the development of AR as an accessible tool for real-life decision making,” said Michael. Apple CEO Tim Cook told Bloomberg at the 2017 WWDC that he was so excited about AR he wanted ‘to yell out and scream,’ as he told Bloomberg. “We’ve talked to IKEA, and they have 3D images of their furniture line. You’re talking about changing the whole experience of how you shop for, in this case, furniture and other objects that you can place around the home.”
IKEA is also exploring the future of food, with its SPACE10 Lab in Copenhagen working on making food production smarter and more efficient. Consumers can check out the future-of-living innovation lab’s pop-up vertical farm at the London Design Festival in Shoreditch, from September 18-24. According to Inhabitat, “The six-day LOKAL pop-up will let the public “enjoy a taste of the future” with a high-tech hydroponics farm and gastronomic workshops that serve up delicious and nutritious food, right where it’s grown.”
The SPACE10 team is also showcasing a “food-producing architecture pavilion” in Copenhagen this month. A futuristic dome houses a photo-bioreactor — a closed system that enables the high productivity of green microalgae — as Dezeen reports.
As part of its commitment to sustainability and better living, IKEA has expanded from home furnishings to SLADDA, a bike designed for urban mobility and sustainability. Introduced in stores (and online) earlier this year, it’s priced at $400 for IKEA FAMILY members or $500 otherwise.
IKEA is also bring solar to its stores, along with other new features that reflect how consumers live and shop today, as illustrated by its Renton , Washington, store.
IKEA USA notes that “The new Renton store employs approximately 425 coworkers (including nearly 50 new hires) and features 10,000 exclusively-designed items, a 600-seat IKEA Restaurant, 43 inspirational room settings, three model home interiors, a supervised children’s play area and will have approximately 1,600 parking spaces with five electric vehicle charging stations.” IKEA Renton sells only LED lighting and uses only LED fixtures inside and outside the building.
Augmented Reality was also a hot topic at IKEA’s Design Days 2017 summit at its global HQ in Älmhult, Sweden, where a range of young and established designers (including Off-White designer Virgil Abloh and NASA) brainstormed with the IKEA team to come up with new products, ideas and innovations.
Ever on the cutting edge of marketing as well as human behavior, the latest IKEA catalog was brought to life by a human: 23-year-old memory whiz Yanjaa Wintersoul, who memorized every detail on the 328-page 2018 catalog. The two-time world memory champion accomplished the feat in just one week.
The annual IKEA Catalogue is the company’s main marketing communications tool and is in its 66th year with the 2018 theme, ‘Make room for life,’ showcasing more than 400 new products plus 100 products at lower prices than last year.
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