1) What are IKEA’s competitive priorities? A low price tag on its products is IKEA’s most prominent competitive priority. Apart from that, other priorities include function, modern design, environmental considerations, and making sure products have been manufactured under acceptable working conditions.
2) Describe IKEA’s process of developing a new product As conventional practices follow, IKEA too starts with a sketch about the new product’s conceptual design. But, it differs from the other companies in the fact that, this design is accompanied by calculation of what the product cost will be. Essentially, the low price begins at the drawing board.
The product design responsibility is shouldered by not just the designers and product developers, but at the same time, the purchasers are also involved. The combination of these teams discusses the product design
...in relation with the procurement of raw materials, suitable suppliers.
3) What are additional features of the IKEA concept (beyond their design process) that contribute to creating exceptional value for customers? The suitable features of the IKEA concept beyond the design process that contributes to create exceptional value for customers are distribution and logistics, and the art of selling the products in the store.
IKEA strives to deliver the right number of goods to the right stores at the right time. They account for the right number of goods based on the demand and requirements. One of the most striking points about IKEA concept is to ship as flat as possible. Thus, even with the bulky products such as tables, and furniture, IKEA tries to ship as flat as possible by shipping the disassembled products. Making things flat is an IKEA obsession. The concept at IKEA i
to pay as less as possible to ship air in their product packets.
The art of displaying and selling products in the stores is another distinctive feature about IKEA concept. Customers contribute to the low prices at IKEA by selecting and collecting products from the self-serve area, taking them home, and using the instructions enclosed to assemble them. IKEA also eases the process of purchasing for the customers by printing and distributing 110 million copies of their product catalogue in 34 different languages. In addition to these, IKEA provides a personal touch to the experience of purchasing. Some of the examples are, company sponsored child care facility, setting up realistic model homes which convey an eerily lived-in impression but are open for customers to sit in, information kiosks providing advice for home décor, and color-coordinated cards offering suggestions on offbeat uses for products.
4) What would be important criteria for selecting a site for an IKEA store? One of the most important criteria for selecting IKEA store is proximity to the transportation and distribution centers. IKEA ships 25 million cubic meters of goods all over the globe yearly. Having the stores sites close and more easily accessible to the transportation routes can significantly contribute to reducing the product costs.
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