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Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died

bbc.co.uk

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Re: Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died

#181

Post by jchb »

alphonsegaston wrote: post #180
jchb wrote: post #178

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not sure where I drew that parallel. I think we aren't discussing the facist angle in this sub-thread. What you are saying regarding Lindgren is correct, but the point is that the Social Democrats went to far, as they drew heavy criticism from even a loyal supporter. But then the party partially reversed direction in the 1990s. Note that Ingvar Kamprad wasn't the only one to leave Sweden for tax related reasons in th…

You used Lindgren and her story as an example of the "business climate" of Sweden in the 70s and as an implied defense of Kamprad/IKEA's actions. But her critique, when coupled with her continued commitment to socialism, isn't comparable to Kamprad/IKEA's actions. Essentially, there's an important and material difference between saying, "I'm a socialist, but these taxes, which I'll continue to pay, are excessive" and…

The way you are framing it, it sounds like Lindgren did a bad thing in criticising the Social democrats, but in the end she remained committed to socialism, so she ended up on the "safe side". Or being "good socialist" is one end of the scale, and "bad fascist capitalist" is on the other end. That doesn't make much sense, as that is mixing up two different scales. Fascism is a political system (could be described as a militaristic nationalism) that is opposed to democracy, while capitalism is an economical system. In fact, what Lindgren did remain committed to was not really socialism, but rather a form of social democracy with a "mix" economy including both state and private ownership - which is what Swedens Social Democratic party came to represent in the 1990s.

Re: Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died

#182

Post by Ma8ee »

woolvalley wrote: post #150
Ma8ee wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree. The jump to “real” furniture is ridiculous. Suddenly the dinner table cost $3000. And if you try to find something in between there are the stores whose main selling point seem to be that they aren’t IKEA. Their prices are double and the quality is worse than IKEA.

Really? You can get some pretty decent solid wood stuff from places like CB2 in the $500-$1500 range for example: https://www.cb2.com/dining-tables/furniture/1 You can also order directly from places like etsy for other custom solid wood furniture around that price range: https://www.etsy.com/listing/268844007/mid-century-dining-ta...

I’ve no direct experience with CB2, but my experience with furniture in that price range is that the quality usually is worse than IKEA. They might use mor expensive materials, but QA is usually bad.

Re: Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died

#183

Post by vidarh »

geezerjay wrote: post #92
jchw wrote: post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually the real reason people throw it away is because it's inexpensive. Is it worth selling my $20 Ikea table? In the grand scheme, probably not. It's not worth as much because it's not as expensive to begin with. Some of it is certainly crap but a lot of the tables and shelves and whatnot are quite nice, but it doesn't mean you're going to get a lot of money for it second hand.

I agree. Ikea furniture is so cheap and readily available that reusing it after a renovation isn't exactly worth the trouble. I have an ikea table that is as new but I'm planning to either give it away or throw it in the trash because it's taking up space and cost abour 30€. Am I going to bother putting it on craigslist to recover 10 or 20€? It's not worth it.

Put stuff in the front yard, and order a takeaway.

I'm only slightly facetious - last few times I've planned to throw something away and had put it outside, a delivery person from somewhere or other asked if they could take it.

Chances are there are plenty of people in lower income jobs that'd love taking it off your hands.

Re: Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died

#184

Post by saddestcatever »

kalleboo wrote: post #20
jacquesm wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'll bet that was the highest quality stuff Ikea ever produced. I was in a store for recycled stuff a week ago or so looking for a typewriter and some old comic books for my kids and it struck me that none of the furniture they was made by Ikea. That translates into there being a direct path to the landfill from Ikea.

I've sold a bunch of IKEA furniture second-hand the couple times I've moved and it all got offers within minutes of putting up the ad. Although I'm sure the low prices encourage people to just throw it away rather than bother trying to sell it.

Same here.

Recently sold 3 MALM dressers on Craigslist when I moved out of my last apartment. Recovered a little over half their value.

My current desk (MALM) was bought on Craiglist 4 years ago. Didn't have a car to get to IKEA. It's survived 4 years of use, and 3 moves.

Re: Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died

#185

Post by vidarh »

jschwartzi wrote: post #79
vq wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IKEA is actually a köttbullar and lingonsylts (lingonberry jam) distribution system so that us Smålänningar can get our fix almost anywhere in the world.

It's also one of the few places I can get herring too. The Poulsbo stuff that I like is seasonal so I have to go to Ikea for canned fish in the summer. That I can buy furniture and kitchen tools is a nice bonus.

And while their selection is limited, it's one of the few places outside the Nordic countries and the Netherlands where you can reliably get salty licorice candy.

Re: Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died

#186

Post by woolvalley »

Ma8ee wrote: post #182
woolvalley wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Really? You can get some pretty decent solid wood stuff from places like CB2 in the $500-$1500 range for example: https://www.cb2.com/dining-tables/furniture/1 You can also order directly from places like etsy for other custom solid wood furniture around that price range: https://www.etsy.com/listing/268844007/mid-century-dining-ta...

I’ve no direct experience with CB2, but my experience with furniture in that price range is that the quality usually is worse than IKEA. They might use mor expensive materials, but QA is usually bad.

So far the quality has been better than ikea for me. CB2 is crate and barrel's 'urban' division.

Re: Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died

#187

Post by lsaferite »

toomanybeersies wrote: post #31

Moving from a country with no Ikea to a country with Ikea has been a paradigm shift for me, and I'm not sure it's entirely a good one. It used to be that if I wanted furniture, I'd go to the second hand store, and look for some used furniture that fitted my purpose. If I couldn't find something that worked, then I'd look online, and then failing that, I'd buy it new. I found some real gems at the second hand store. A…

When I see

> used furniture

All I read is

> bedbugs

And then my skin crawls.

Re: Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died

#188

Post by nathanasmith »

coldtea wrote: post #50
WisNorCan wrote: post #45

Europe has less of a philanthropic tradition than the United States. For example, Warren Buffet and Bill Gates have both pledged to give away the vast majority of their fortunes. Jeff Bezos is now making plans for his philanthropy. This happens in Europe too, but is less common. I was looking to see if there were any specific plans for Mr. Kamprad’s wealth, but unfortunately did not see anything.

Europe doesn't believe as much in handouts from the rich, or in depending on arbitrary goodwill. We believe more in structuring society, government, welfare, healthcare, funding, etc, such that they're not needed.

You condescending assholes waste no opportunity to toot your horn. Your statement is as vacuous as it is wrong. First of all, there are quite a few European nations with double digit percentages of the population living under what is considered the poverty line in the US. Secondly, your rich don't give because they are more interested preserving a family name and giving the money to their descendants.

Re: Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad has died

#189

Post by philjohn »

jacquesm wrote: post #157
philjohn wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You say that, but in two previous homes I've purchased, assembled and fitted IKEA kitchens - they were far better quality than other options in the same price range, and even held a candle to ones costing 2x as much. Solid oak for the doors and drawer fronts, good quality hinges and handles - the cabinets themselves were just laminated chipboard, but unless you're spending £££ that's the same for most kitchen supplie…

> Solid oak for the doors and drawer fronts Easily fooled? No way that is solid oak. And for once that's a good thing, solid oak would warp, so you'd have to cross laminate it to counteract this. It's about 95% MDF with some veneer to make it look like wood. Yes it's heavy, but MDF is about as heavy as solid wood would be. The only way to get the kind of fit that makes it possible to assemble an IKEA product is to us…

It was a four sided frame with an inlay, and you could easily see on the boreholes for the hinges that it was wood rather than MDF.
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