Flatpack Empire
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- Episode
- Episode Two
- Broadcast Info
- 2018 (58 mins)
- Description
- IKEA is undoubtedly one of the world’s most successful, enigmatic, and recognisable global brands - last year nearly 900 million people in 49 countries visited its stores, with a turnover of over £34 billion. In a major new three-part series, our cameras explore IKEA’s design studios, factories and stores around the world for the very first time. Few companies can legitimately claim to shape the way we live today. Fewer still inspire a cult-like devotion in customers and employees alike. But IKEA is not like other companies. The famously secretive Swedish furniture retailer is guided by the principle of creating "the better everyday life for the many people." But what is the secret to its success? How does the machine of IKEA affect the people who work for it, and how does its ruthlessly efficient business model affect the world? In episode two, we see what it takes to get new products from initial design to stores around the world. One of IKEA’s newest designers Hanna-Kaarina Heikkila wants to challenge mass production by creating an ‘imperfect vase’ that has the finger-marks of the creator - she travels to China to see if her idea is possible. We visit the home of the Billy Bookcase, to see what it takes to be a supplier for IKEA, as they try to pitch for a new range of wardrobes. Will they pass the stringent tests that the company demands? And we see what it takes to open a new store in Sheffield, recruiting hundreds of new co-workers who need to display the unique culture and values of the company. But with delays to construction, will the store open on time?
- Genre
- Business Studies; Culture; Design; https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/ou/search/search.php?genre=59
How to cite this record
The Open University, "Flatpack Empire". https://learningonscreen.ac.uk/ou/search/index.php/prog/229513 (Accessed 10 Jan 2025)