What Is the IKEA Logo?
The IKEA logo is the name IKEA in blue capital letters on a yellow oval, framed by a blue rectangle. Its oval and rectangle date from the 1960s, and IKEA last updated the logo in 2018.
The brand belongs to Inter IKEA Systems B.V., the franchisor behind the business. IKEA is the Swedish home furnishing business that Ingvar Kamprad first registered in July 1943.
On store fronts and flags IKEA often uses the name on its own, without the oval and frame, as a separate wordmark. The oval logo is available as the IKEA logo SVG.
IKEA Logo Facts
| Introduced | Oval and rectangle in the 1960s; last updated 2018 |
| Symbol | None; the name sits in an oval inside a rectangle |
| Logo type | Emblem: the name inside an oval and rectangle |
| Earlier mark | A round red logo, first used in 1951 |
| Owner | Inter IKEA Systems B.V. |
What the IKEA Logo Means
The four letters are an acronym of the founder's roots, from his name to his home parish in Småland.
- I for Ingvar
- K for Kamprad
- E for Elmtaryd, the farm where he grew up
- A for Agunnaryd, his home parish in Småland
IKEA says blue and yellow honour its Swedish heritage. Blue is meant to draw attention to the offer, and yellow to leave an optimistic impression.
The letters are based on an extra bold Futura with tiny serifs added, so the outlines stayed crisp in newspaper adverts. The resulting typeface is called IKEA Sans and was designed by Robin Nicholas.
IKEA Logo History
The IKEA logo began with Kamprad's first trademark in 1943 and reached its oval form in the 1960s.
| Year | What changed |
|---|---|
| 1943 | Kamprad's first trademark |
| 1951 | The Sundsvall printers Sandström draw a round, red logo |
| 1962 | The accent over the E goes |
| 1984 | The first visual profile manual; the trademark is registered |
| 1991 | IKEA builds every new store blue with the yellow name on the front |
| 2018 | An update improves legibility and colour on screens |
An accent soon appeared over the E, apparently inspired by the French pen maker La Société Evergood, for which Kamprad was the general agent. Written in lower case as ikéa, the name was read as one word from the start.
The 1951 logo had something like a thunder cloud around the name. IKEA calls its first logo round and red, a colour Kamprad linked with low prices. A year later, head of advertising Gillis Lundgren redesigned it, placing the name diagonally in capitals.
In the 1960s production designer Gillis Nilsson stripped the logo back. The diagonal turned horizontal, and IKEA was put inside an oval framed by a rectangle, in black and white.
After years of variations in black and white, red and white, and blue and yellow, IKEA issued its first visual profile manual in 1984.
How Local Markets Dressed Up the IKEA Logo
As IKEA spread in the 1970s, local markets dressed the logo up with their own mascots.
- Germany and Austria: an elk, and Austria stood an elk statue outside its store.
- Canada, the USA and Japan: a stylised Viking figure.
- Denmark: a teddy bear, as Denmark was keen not to look too Swedish.
The red and white version lasted for many years in Scandinavia.
For more brands like IKEA, browse our retail logos.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does IKEA stand for?
Ingvar Kamprad Elmtaryd Agunnaryd: the founder's name, the farm where he grew up and his home parish in Småland, Sweden.
Why is the IKEA logo blue and yellow?
IKEA says the colours reflect its Swedish heritage, with blue to draw attention and yellow to give an optimistic impression.
What was the first IKEA logo?
A round, red design from 1951. Kamprad liked red because he linked it with low prices.
When did the IKEA logo last change?
In 2018, when IKEA updated it to read more clearly and reproduce its colours consistently on screens.