Published 16 August 2019 • Inter IKEA newsroom
IKEA invests heavily in the smart home
IKEA Home smart was initiated as a project in 2012 with the ambition to enrich life at home by incorporating digital elements and technologies into products and solutions. Several launches within the smart home has followed since then and now IKEA has taken the strategic decision to invest even more in the home smart area by establishing IKEA Home smart as its own business unit within IKEA of Sweden.
“At IKEA we want to continue to offer products for a better life at home for the many people going forward. In order to do so we need to explore products and solutions beyond conventional home furnishing,” says Björn Block, Head of the new IKEA Home smart Business Unit at IKEA of Sweden.
Now IKEA is embarking on a new journey when IKEA Home smart will be established as a Business Unit responsible for the smart home business end to end.
“We have decided to invest significantly in Home Smart across IKEA to fast-forward the development. This is the biggest New Business we are establishing since the introduction of Children’s IKEA,” says Peter van der Poel, Manager IKEA Range & Supply.
Since the beginning in 2012, IKEA Home smart has set out to enrich all aspects of IKEA by incorporating digital elements and technologies into products and solutions. Launches within the product areas of wireless charging, smart lighting and just recently smart sound at home together with SONOS are all examples of the success to do so. Besides that IKEA has also created an own eco system and app for smart lighting first introduced as TRÅDFRI, and in June changed name to IKEA Home smart app.
Besides this IKEA has established great relationships with major digital companies and has become a recognized player in the space of smart homes and innovation. In order to grasp the full potential and utilize opportunities connected to life at home IKEA has decided to invest further and scale up with this new Business Unit IKEA Home smart.
“By working together with all other departments within IKEA, the business unit of IKEA Home smart will drive the digital transformation of the IKEA range, improving and transforming existing businesses and developing new businesses to bring more diverse smart products to the many people. We are just getting started,” ends Björn Block, Head of the new IKEA Home smart Business Unit at IKEA of Sweden.
In the Range & Supply business, IKEA of Sweden AB is responsible for developing, designing and producing home furnishing solutions to address the everyday needs of the many people.