IKEA Designs Its Showrooms Like Typical Malaysian Flats

IKEA designs showrooms like typical Malaysian flats

IKEA has always been internationally known for their clever, witty, and out-of-the-box ideas when it comes to advertising their products. In fact, their cheeky ads have gone viral multiple times for their ingenuity. Their creativity has also extended to their showrooms too, as a Malaysians spotted a few that looked like typical Malaysian flats in their stores.

IKEA adds local touch to their showrooms in Cheras and Penang

A couple of pictures depicting an IKEA showroom were shared on Twitter by user @ezasfarison 6th December. At first glance, the pictures didn’t look anything out of the ordinary, but @ezasfaris‘s caption pointed out that he loved how IKEA localised their showrooms by incorporating Malaysian details into it.

@ezasfaris tweet Image credit: @ezasfaris

The showroom he stumbled upon in MyTown Shopping Centre, Cheras was modelled after a typical Malaysian flat. IKEA nailed every detail from the “Blok A” sign on the side, to the unit number, down to the awning installed over a glass shutter window. It almost accurately showed how a Malaysian flat unit usually looks on the outside, as noted by @ezasfaris.

ikea designs showroom like a malaysian flat
Image credit: @ezasfaris

You can also spot some potted plants and a small open shoe rack placed by the door, a common sight in most Malaysian flats and a true testament to IKEA’s meticulous effort indeed.

ikea designs showroom like a malaysian flat Image credit: @ezasfaris

In the replies to the tweet, netizen @taqiyuddinbakir was quick to chime in with a picture he took of a showroom in IKEA Penang too. He remarked how IKEA kept to Penang’s culture by using their famous Peranakan tiles in one of their showrooms.

You can even see a collage of old-school family portraits, lace curtains, and wooden shutter windows in the background that IKEA cleverly added to exhibit a typical Penang family home back in the days.

@taqiyuddinbakir tweet
Image credit: @taqiyuddinbakir

Netizens praise IKEA’s attention to detail

@ezasfaris’s tweet has garnered more than 2,200 retweets and close to 7,000 likes at the time of writing with netizens impressed and humoured by IKEA’s attention to detail.

User @Hati31st replied approvingly in Malay, “This is what you call local style.”

@Hati31st tweet Image credit: @Hati31st

@brandonleong_ also shared a similar thought as he expressed that companies who put in the effort to personalise and make their brand relevant to local consumers are admirable.

@brandonleong_ tweet Image credit: @brandonleong_

Meanwhile, @orangyangtidur hilariously remarked that IKEA’s showroom is an aesthetic version of a PPR flat. PPR stands for Program Perumahan Rakyat, or People’s Housing Projects – a programme dedicated to build low-cost flats for families who earn a maximum household income of RM3,000.

@orangyangtidur tweet Image credit: @orangyangtidur

IKEA’s accurate reenactment of local homes impresses netizens

IKEA did not originate from Malaysia, but their brilliant and wholesome take to make their products more personable, relatable, and well-received by Malaysians is something that all brands can borrow a page from. After all, there’s something very endearing and unifying about chancing on a regular and familiar sight together in a foreign space.

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Cover image adapted from: @ezasfaris and @taqiyuddinbakir

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