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Who owns IKEA? Brand faces boycott calls for pulling ads from right-wing GB News

The fledgling opinion-led channel suffered a significant blow as at least four more major brands pulled their advertising within 48 hours

IKEA sparked a major pushback after pulling advertising following complaints they had appeared on right-wing British television channel GB News. The Swedish furniture giant said they were in the process of investigating "how this may have occurred to ensure it won’t happen again in future." Now, some have labeled the retailer's act of distancing themselves from the recently launched station as "pathetic."

The fledgling opinion-led channel has already suffered a significant blow as at least four more major brands pulled their advertising within 48 hours following complaints, saying commercials were aired on the platform "without their knowledge." Among these are drinks giant Kopparberg and Grolsch, skincare brand Nivea, and the Open University, all of whom have decided to distance themselves from GB News following pressure from campaign groups such as Stop Funding Hate, which urged its nearly 122,000 followers to "persuade brands to reconsider their involvement," according to the Daily Express.

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IKEA released a statement on its stance following the complaints. "IKEA has not knowingly advertised on GB News. We have safeguards in place to prevent our advertising from appearing on platforms that are not in line with our humanistic values and vision to side with the many people," it said. "We are in the process of investigating how this may have occurred to ensure it won’t happen again in future, and have suspended paid display advertising in the meantime."

The statement sparked outrage on social media, with several prominent figures calling for a boycott of the retailer's products. "Oh shut up, you pathetic virtue-signaling twerps," Piers Morgan tweeted. "I’m now boycotting IKEA."

"Here we go again. Corporations making fools of themselves. If you value Freedom of the Press then please boycott these idiotic companies: Nivea, IKEA, Kopparberg and Grolsch. And any other company that engages in this pathetic Woke virtue signaling," Islamic scholar Ayaan Hirsi Ali chimed in.

"I certainly will not purchase anything from IKEA until they lift their boycott of @GBNEWS," former British MP Kate Hoey added. "That’s a shame. I quite liked the IKEA tumblers," actor Laurence Fox wrote. "Oh well. Time to boycott@IKEAUKSupport @IKEAUK. Maybe they’ll realize that the shouty internet types aren’t quite as numerous as their virtue signaling department think they are."

Who owns IKEA? 

IKEA as a brand is owned by two separate entities. INGKA Holding BV owns the holding of the IKEA Group. Meanwhile, the Stichting INGKA Foundation is the owner of the whole Group. The IKEA Group is not the owner of the brand, which is managed by Inter IKEA Systems BV, part of Inter IKEA BV that is the real owner of the IKEA Concept.

IKEA was founded in Sweden in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad. The brand, which has been the world's largest furniture retailer since 2008, is an acronym that consists of the founder's initials (Ingvar Kamprad), his family farm Elmtaryd, and his hometown Agunnaryd in Småland, southern Sweden. The group is mostly known for its modernist and minimal designs for a wide variety of appliances and furniture. Its interior design work is often acclaimed for its eco-friendly simplicity.