IKEA founder Theodore Ingvar Kamprad is one of the most famous Swedish entrepreneurs. He founded perhaps the world's largest chain of stores that sell goods for the home. At one time he was one of the richest men in the world. He conquered the market with his approach, selling the cheapest and most environmentally friendly products.
Biography of a businessman
IKEA creator Kamprad was born in 1926. He was born in the small Swedish town of Pietteryd. As a child, he tried to earn a living on his own. It is obvious that his parents instilled in him a craving for entrepreneurship.
The creator of IKEA started by selling matches to neighbors. So he independently earned his first money. While at school, Kamprad discovered that matches could be purchased in bulk in Stockholm and then sold at a low retail price for high profits.
When IKEA founder Kamprad got older, he concentrated on selling fish. Then he went into businessassociated with Christmas decorations, ballpoint pens, seeds and pencils.
Foundation of IKEA
The creator of IKEA, whose biography is given in this article, founded his company, which as a result became one of the most popular and successful in the world, when he was only 17 years old. He invested in the business the money he received from his father as a gift.
The name IKEA was not chosen by chance. This is an acronym, that is, a kind of abbreviation, which is formed by the initial sounds. He composed the name of the company from his own initials IK (Ingvar Kamprad), took the letter E from the name of the family company Elmtaryd, and also used the name of the village Agunnaryd, which was located nearby.
Packed furniture
The creator of IKEA as an example of a leader in the production of furniture and household goods began to be cited as soon as possible after the start of its production. The very idea that it is possible to produce furniture in flat boxes came to him back in the 50s. It happened all of a sudden when he noticed one of his subordinates unscrewing the legs of a table to fit it into a small customer's car.
A certain imprint on the entire business of the creator of IKEA, whose photo is in this article, left a disease that he suffered from. This is dyslexia, a violation of the ability to learn to write and read, while maintaining the general ability to learn. Kamprad primarily suffered from writing problems. As a result, many Swedish-sounding product names have appearedsolely due to the fact that Kamprad himself was unable to remember the numerical articles.
Participation in the Nazi group
Definitely a black spot in Kamprad's biography was his participation in a nationalist group called "New Swedish Movement". This became known after the personal letters of the Swedish fascist and social activist Per Engdahl became public and public in 1994.
From them it followed that the creator of IKEA is a Nazi. Kamprad has been a member of the Novoshvedsky Movement since 1942. Until at least September 1945, he actively participated in raising funds for his group, and also recruited new members and supporters.
Now it is no longer possible to reliably establish when he left the group, it is only known that until the beginning of the 50s they remained close friends with Engdahl, constantly kept in touch and corresponded. In addition, it became known that Kamprad was also a member of the Nazi party called the Swedish Socialist Rally. Such data was published by the national security service.
Money for charity
Kamprad did not deny his participation in the Nazi movement. After being exposed by the media about his membership in the Swedish Nazi Party, he promised to donate 100 million euros to charity.
Kamprad became a member of the Nazi organization when he was only 17 years old, at the same time he attractednew members. He frankly spoke about these pages of his biography in his book "I Have an Idea: The History of IKEA". He devoted two chapters to the Nazi movement. In 1994, he wrote an open letter to the employees of his company, in which he admitted that the connection with the Nazis was the biggest and most unfortunate mistake of his life.
At the same time, in connection with some specific people, he does not regret this participation, which the businessman also repeatedly stated. For example, in 2010, in a long interview with the writer and journalist Elisabeth Osbrink, he announced that today he considers the fascist Per Engdahl a great man, and he will remain with this opinion until his death.
Kamprad founded a charitable foundation in the Netherlands, he himself was its chairman until his death. The foundation has effectively become the parent company of all IKEA stores.
According to analysts, the foundation is considered one of the richest in the world, with assets reaching $36 billion, it is one of the most financially influential charities.
Pathological thrift
For many years, Kamprad remained one of the richest people in the world. The creator of IKEA was often an example for an essay, having managed to create such a successful company almost single-handedly.
In 1973, he became so rich that he could afford to leave Sweden for Switzerland, where he settled in the small town of Epalenge. For several decades after that, he was officially recognized as the richest resident of Switzerland.
To SwedenKamprad returned in 2014. As it turned out, he left his native country as a protest against the high taxes imposed by the government. He agreed to return only after the death of his wife in order to stay closer to the family.
For all his we alth, Kamprad was pathologically thrifty. For example, in interviews, he often said that the car he drives is already 15 years old, he flies exclusively in economy class on planes, and he always requires his employees to use paper on both sides, and he always does.
So it's no surprise that all the furniture in his house comes from his own shops, except for the grandfather clock and the old armchair. Kamprad himself often said that he had been using it for more than thirty years. His wife persuades him to change the chair, but it suits him in everything, except that the material itself has become dirty.
In January 2018, the founder of IKEA passed away at his home in the Swedish province of Småland. He is 91 years old.
Kamprad's condition
In 2010, Kamprad's fortune was estimated at $23 billion. At that time, this provided him with 11th place in the list of the rich, which is regularly compiled by Forbes magazine. The very next year, the publication estimated the fortune of the Swedish businessman at only six billion dollars, saying that he became the main loser of 2011 in the world.
According to the results of 2012, the authoritative Bloomberg agency sent Kamprad to the fifth place among the richest people on Earth. HisAnalysts estimated the fortune at $42.9 billion. But according to Forbes, he had significantly less money at his disposal - only about three billion dollars. Therefore, according to the magazine, he ranked only 377th in the list of world billionaires.
There is no reliable information about his condition for a later period.
Private life
Kamprad married for the first time in 1950, when he was only 24 years old. Kerstin Wadling became his chosen one. Together they lived for ten years, in 1960 their marriage broke up. Together they raised an adopted daughter named Annika.
In 1963, Kamprad married a second time. His wife's name was Margaret Stennert. They had three sons Jonas, Peter and Matthias.
Kamprad Company
Now IKEA is registered in the Netherlands, although it originally has Swedish roots. The company, owned by Kamprad for many years, carried out an internal resale of its own brand in 2012 for $ 11 billion. Moreover, a company from Liechtenstein, controlled by Ingvar himself, acted as a seller. The buyer at the same time was a subsidiary of IKEA itself, registered in Holland.
The deal was made to simplify the structures that exist within the business group, as well as to achieve global consolidation. The press noted that after this transaction, the IKEA trademark acquired a very specific and very high value.
The company's activities are based on the implementation of furniture and design,as well as the sale of related products for the home. Its products are designed for the mass consumer. The concept of IKEA products is that customers have to assemble most of the furniture range on their own at home. The goods themselves are sold and transported in flat boxes, reducing service and logistics costs.
