Kamprad

Ingvar Kamprad (1926–2018) was a Swedish entrepreneur best known as the founder of IKEA, the global furniture retailer. He was born in Agunnaryd, a village in Småland, Sweden, and started his business activities at a young age. In 1943 he established IKEA as a mail-order company selling pens, wallets, watches, and other goods; furniture was added in 1947, and by the 1950s the focus shifted to affordable, well-designed furniture. The flat-pack concept, which enables customers to transport and self-assemble products, emerged in the 1950s and became a cornerstone of IKEA’s model. The name IKEA is an acronym derived from Ingvar Kamprad’s initials plus Elmtaryd, the farm where he grew up, and Agunnaryd, the village of his childhood.

Kamprad gradually delegated day-to-day operations while maintaining influence over the company’s long-term direction. The IKEA group is structured with the Stichting INGKA Foundation, a Dutch-registered philanthropic foundation, which controls Ingka Holding and thus the majority of IKEA’s retail activities; separate franchising rights are held by Inter IKEA Systems B.V. This structure is designed to preserve the longevity and independence of the IKEA concept.

Known for a deliberately frugal lifestyle, Kamprad’s philosophy of low prices, functional design, and extensive self-service stores helped shape a distinct corporate culture and global retail footprint. His legacy lives on in IKEA’s continued emphasis on affordable, well-made furniture and in the organizational framework that governs the IKEA concept and its charitable foundations.