IKEA MARKET SEGMENTATION
The core for a company to differentiate itself into a demanding market is identifying
customers` needs and expectations based on cultural, geographic, demographic and
socioeconomic variable and on the other hand founded on psychographic, life style,
values and personality. This process is called market segmentation1.
Customers for IKEA have always been central since its birth. The ability showed by
IKEA in approaching and attracts the global middle class, appealing to the
dissimilarity in cultures, values and lifestyle, have been demonstrated by the success
gained worldwide.
Its ability was adapting and customizes their product, till the little details, to the
customers’ tastes and predilections, appealing to their traditions and culture and to
their own manner to practically use the goods, totally different across the countries.
The typical IKEA customer can be defined as follow:
Young and more concerned about design and innovation. Limited financial resources
(low and middle class), according to the low cost product range that IKEA offer.
An outline of segments can be assembling from a geographic, demographic and
lifestyle perspective2:
Through the differentiation of its products, based on “finction`s of consumers` value,
in which people live and spend their time and money”3( lifestyle), on how people
react to the different stimuli from environmental situation around them (personality
traits)4, based on income, age, place of residence and so on (demographic) and on
geographic influence in terms of norms, culture, lifestyle and different way of
consumption, IKEA is globally maintaining a strong position into the markets,
delivering style and design for everyone and everywhere at an affordable price.
2. Discuss IKEA's strategy in terms of :
• Positioning the brand in the eyes and minds of their customers
• The drive fro building a strong global brand
• Its pricing strategy and whether it is sustainable