How IKEA is working to become more circular
In a circular economy, products and materials are kept in circulation through processes such as reuse, repair, refurbishment and recycling. Circularity helps tackle climate change and biodiversity loss, reduce pollution and waste and regenerate resources. It is a key focus area of IKEA’s sustainability strategy. We focus on offering products that incorporate circular principles, keeping materials in use for as long as possible and enabling our customers to prolong the life of IKEA products and materials.
Designed to follow along for the ride
You never know where life will take you – moving out of home, relocating to a new city, making room for additions to the family or downsizing for a new stage of life. Whatever life brings, we want to make sure your IKEA furniture comes along for the adventure.
We’re constantly improving our products so you can disassemble and reassemble them more easily if you move from one place to another. Take our well-loved BILLY bookcase, which has been in our product range since the late 1970s. A recent redesign includes a snap-on, snap-off, nail-free back panel, making the bookcase easy to take apart and put back together.
Life changes might also mean you want to scale your furniture up or down. Maybe you need to fit more people on your sofa, or you need less sofa for your smaller space. Modular, flexible solutions mean you can add or remove parts, like with SÖDERHAMN sofa – start with a two-seater, expand into a corner sofa or add a chaise longue, then take it away again if needed. Adaptability also means you can change the style, form or function of a product rather than replace it. Like switching the doors on your BESTÅ cupboard, adding a new section or a completely new function.
Designed to follow along for the ride
You never know where life will take you – moving out of home, relocating to a new city, making room for additions to the family or downsizing for a new stage of life. Whatever life brings, we want to make sure your IKEA furniture comes along for the adventure.
We’re constantly improving our products so you can disassemble and reassemble them more easily if you move from one place to another. Take our well-loved BILLY bookcase, which has been in our product range since the late 1970s. A recent redesign includes a snap-on, snap-off, nail-free back panel, making the bookcase easy to take apart and put back together.
Life changes might also mean you want to scale your furniture up or down. Maybe you need to fit more people on your sofa, or you need less sofa for your smaller space. Modular, flexible solutions mean you can add or remove parts, like with SÖDERHAMN sofa – start with a two-seater, expand into a corner sofa or add a chaise longue, then take it away again if needed. Adaptability also means you can change the style, form or function of a product rather than replace it. Like switching the doors on your BESTÅ cupboard, adding a new section or a completely new function.
A circular business by 2030
We are transforming every aspect of what we do, from the way we source energy and materials to how we design our products, how and when we meet our customers, and how we run our operations.
Care and repair
Of course, accidents happen, but if you break an item or lose a part, we want to make it easy to repair or replace, so your furniture lasts longer. You can order many spare parts from us – large items like sofa cushions and smaller fittings like screws. Some families, including IVAR system, have standardised fittings and solid wood parts that are easy to adapt or repair yourself.
Several of our bed frames, armchairs, mattresses, sofas and sofa beds have removable, machine-washable fabric covers to make them easier to care for and maintain. We provide lots of tips and tricks, both online and in-store, on how to repair and care for your products and keep them around longer.
Care and repair
Of course, accidents happen, but if you break an item or lose a part, we want to make it easy to repair or replace, so your furniture lasts longer. You can order many spare parts from us – large items like sofa cushions and smaller fittings like screws. Some families, including IVAR system, have standardised fittings and solid wood parts that are easy to adapt or repair yourself.
Several of our bed frames, armchairs, mattresses, sofas and sofa beds have removable, machine-washable fabric covers to make them easier to care for and maintain. We provide lots of tips and tricks, both online and in-store, on how to repair and care for your products and keep them around longer.
We’ve set ambitious goals
- To enable our customers to acquire, care for, and pass on products in circular ways
- To design every product from the very beginning to be reused, refurbished, remanufactured and finally recycled
- To only use renewable and recyclable materials
- To advocate, collaborate and form business partnerships to promote a circular economy
Materials that keep giving
n a world of limited resources, we want to use materials that are already in use and keep them in use for as long as possible. There are many examples across our range where recycled materials replace virgin materials, in whole or in part.
LOCKEBO is IKEA’s first worktop made from a minimum of 80% recycled glass from used glass packaging or glass waste, including broken car windows and windscreens. STRANDMOLKE duvet and BLÅVINGAD soft toy collection are filled with 100% recycled polyester and HÅLLBAR bins contain a minimum of 50% recycled polypropylene.
More than 60% of IKEA products are based on renewable materials and more than 10% contain recycled materials.
The circle is almost complete
Our journey to improve our services to promote circularity is ongoing, and we’ve got a lot more in the pipeline. Our ambition is to create a set of services that support our customers to prolong the life of their IKEA products for as long as possible – whether the item stays in their home, passes on to someone else or becomes an entirely new product.
