IKEA

Originally published in 2019 on The Nib, a wonderful publication that no longer exists and the world is worse off for it.

This comic will forever and always sit in my mind as my break into The Big Leagues. The Nib has won a Pulitzer for crying out loud, and I get to do a comic about something Swedish and complicated and get paid for it and they'll publish it? Wow.

I live ten minutes away from the second-largest IKEA warehouse in the world. Built in Stockholm in 1965 and inspired by the Guggenheim, this is the store I've bought most of my furniture from.
When I was five months old, my parents got me a green stuffed dog in that store. Like many Swedes, IKEA has played a considerable part in my life. It's been a big year for the flat-pack giant. In 2018, IKEA turned 75 years old. They cut thousands of jobs. Bought some windfarms in Finlands and the American app Taskrabbit. Their founder, Ingvar Kamprad, died.
Kamprad had a knack for sales from an early age. Encouraged by his grandmother, he started selling match boxes and then moved on to Christmas cards, magazines, tapestries, fish, berries... When he was 11, he finally made a profit selling garden seeds.
At 17 he founded his own company, named after his home address: IKEA. The business started as a mail-order company for pens, cigarette lighters, folders, wallets, photo frames, table runners, clocks, jewellery, nylon stockings and then, in 1948, furniture.
The first piece was an armchair named Rut. Ingvar: I had trouble remembering serial numbers, so putting names on furniture became obvious for IKEA.
That year he hired his first employee. Up until this point, the company had been run by Ingvar out of the family farm, with the help of his parents, aunt and grandmother. Today IKEA has 208 000 employees.
In 1952, IKEA opened its first permanent furniture exhibit in an effort to battle the mail-order price war. A thousand guests came opening day. They were all treated to coffee and cinnamon buns. Ingvar: 'No one buys furniture on an empty stomach!' Today, IKEA is the largest food exporter in Sweden.
The first warehouse opened in 1958. The flatpack idea was refined, IKEA brought abroad the concept of Democratic Design - good furniture for all. And today, there are 424 IKEA stores in 52 countries.
Kamprad talked a lot about Good Capitalism and instilled a sense of virtue in IKEA's work. From Berta Kamprad's cancer foundation, to sustainable, eco-friendly materials and humanitarian projects, IKEA strives to do 'good'. The company exports a positive image of Sweden. Hardworking, frugal, humble. Caring about others.
Then there's the rest. The less nice stuff. The greatest scandal came in 1994 when Expressen uncovered Kamprad's past as a Nazi sympathizer.
Ingvar: 'This is a part of my life I bitterly regret'. He apologized for the 'sins of his youth', citing the influence of his German grandmother. And then there's the money. Spending more than you need is a mortal sin within IKEA and that apparently includes TAXES.
An investigation in 2011 uncovered a secret foundation in Liechtenstein that maintains control over IKEA's profits and can claim a capital of 225 billion Swedish Crowns - Roughly 26 billion USD. Ingvar: 'Dear IKEA family, a big hug to you all!' Is there really such a thing as good capitalism?
I'm in a complicated relationship with IKEA. I like the furniture, it's cheap and it makes my life easier... but how much easier would it be if IKEA paid their taxes?
So much of the company image is built on Swedish identity. While I'm proud of my country, I can't turn a blind eye to Kamprad's history with overt and exclusionary nationalism.
Questioning IKEA means in some way that I also have to question myself. Even writing this, I find it difficult to be too harsh. Are my emotions manufactured by a multi-billion dollar company? My grandad's name was also Ingvar. I can relate. The furniture is so cheap and the taxes here are so high. It was such a long time ago and he said he was sorry...
There's a reason why the loyalty club is called IKEA family.