The Visit Sweden campaign reveals the tourism gems behind Ikea’s product name
Ikea has given the simplicity of Swedish design to the world, but as a new nimble advertising campaign points out, the choice of names for its products can do the home country something of a disservice.
Created by the advertising agency Forsman & Bodenfors, the Discover the Originals campaign reveals that the names of many Ikea products – which the world has long struggled to pronounce – are named after real places in Sweden. It then encourages tourists to visit these tourist sites.
In addition to Lake Bolman, which is not far from Agunnaryd, where Ikea’s founder, Ingvar Kamprad, grew up, the campaign highlights the places that Ektorpsoffan, Ingatorpsbordet and Hemsjö block candles are named after.
– In Sweden, we are proud of Ikea and in a way you can say that they helped us make Swedish places world famous through the names they borrowed for their products, says Nils Persson, marketing manager at Visit Sweden. “Now we want, with warmth and a twinkle in the eye, to show the originals behind the product names and invite the world to discover the whole of Sweden.”
Credits:
Agency: Forsman & Bodenfors
Art Director: Johanna Hofman-Bang
Copywriter: Marcus Hägglöf
Author: Elisabeth Christensson
Designer: Håkan Larsson
Production company: BRF