IKEA Launches Inspiration Experience In Select Cities

IKEA announced that it will commemorate its 75th anniversary this year with a limited-time IKEA Inspiration Experience in New York and Chicago.

This free, interactive pop-up event is designed to both surprise and delight IKEA fans by simultaneously allowing them to “step into” room settings from the 2019 catalog, test their trivia knowledge while learning more about IKEA and even walk away with IKEA prizes.

The news comes as the company revealed that its 2019 IKEA U.S. catalog will be released this month. The catalog is filled with new product offerings, home furnishing inspiration, and smart solutions for every area of the home.

“For 75 years we have been driven by the belief that furniture can be affordable without sacrificing principles of quality, design and sustainability,” said Shideh Hashemi, marketing manager for IKEA U.S., in a press release. “In our 2019 catalog, we are thrilled to introduce a multitude of exciting new products that stay true to our heritage, providing form and function that’s both easy on our wallets and our planet.”

Another new move this year: According to Ad Age, IKEA is sending out 50 percent fewer print catalogs in an effort to be more sustainable.

“We’re sharing content in new ways because consumers are consuming content in new ways,” explains Kendra Ferguson, media project manager for IKEA North America, which is headquartered in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. “We’re doing more digital and having experiences so people can interact with us more.”

And later this year, IKEA will feature giant pop-up catalogs, sized 10 feet by 10 feet, in select urban areas. Billboards in high-profile areas such as New York’s Times Square will also feature a digital rendering that turns 2D catalog pages into animations.

The IKEA Inspiration Experience will be open to the public in New York, NY and Chicago, IL for a limited time this August.