IKEA’s vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people. They believe that one way to start a better life at home is with sustainability. So achieving their target to inspire and enable 1 billion people to live more sustainably by 2030 depended on demonstrating that acting sustainably is easy and affordable for the many people.

A number of initiatives such as their Buy-back scheme, circularity hub, and their phasing out of single-use plastics are all contributing to this goal. But there was still the shadow of perception that flatpack furniture is non-durable and disposable, which means a lot of it ends up in landfill.

As a force for good, IKEA wanted to challenge the ‘fast furniture’ mindset of buying more and raise awareness that IKEA furniture is designed to last. We were briefed to help customers to take action in a way that’s achievable for everyone.

Our job was to create something that enables customers to take action. In a smart, simple way that’s affordable and achievable for everyone.

We took the iconic IKEA assembly instructions then completely re-designed them, in reverse, matching the style precisely to create a set of Disassembly Instructions for their most popular products. And those most commonly listed on Gumtree.

This helps customers take IKEA furniture apart correctly when they’re selling it, storing it, or moving it to a new home. And drives instore visitation to pick up free screws or bits they’re missing. Extending furniture’s life and reducing its impact on the environment.

We completely changed the one thing IKEA never change, their assembly instructions. And in doing so, we solved an environmental and a durability concern at the same time.

We saw an opportunity to overcome the biggest consumer barriers to climate action: firstly people felt they didn’t have enough support from business, secondly, they didn’t know what to do, and thirdly it’s too expensive. So we needed to help customers take action in a way that’s affordable and achievable for everyone.

A recurring theme in our insight was the misperception that IKEA furniture is disposable – old pieces are thrown out to make room for new. As we explored how to make sustainability meaningful, relevant and compelling for customers the breakthrough moment came when we realised the answer was to sell less and encourage people to re-use instead.

From analysing two years worth of data for furniture resales on platforms such as Gumtree it was clear that many IKEA customers already appreciated re-using products. So we created Disassembly Instructions for favourite products like Poang armchair and Billy bookcase.

We launched the Disassembly instructions work in February 2021 on IKEA’s website, social channels and ECRM programme. Customers were invited to download disassembly instructions for their furniture to make it easier to pack – whether it was to move more easily, to store for later use or regift to a new owner. Hosting the instructions solely online meant lower impact on the environment and they’re accessible to anyone 24/7.