Haters Gonna Hate

There are two types of people in this world – There are lovers and there are haters – I am a lover through and through and that goes for IKEA too!

Seriously though – there are a lot of IKEA haters out there and I don’t get it. Sure, they are the kings of mass produced, highly recognizable over used stuff (like the Billy bookcase that is in nearly every house from Melbourne to Mumbai), but they also do some really cool, limited edition short run stuff that is very well designed (the PS range) – and, if you put your creative hat on, their standard basic range can be modified and ‘hacked’ if you will, to create some really great customized and handy furniture.

I have always believed that one day, ‘vintage’ IKEA will become highly collectable. There is a lot of vintage furniture that today is highly sought after and demands high prices that was originally designed for the masses. Eames fiberglass chairs – for example, were mass-produced, along with many other Eames products – in fact they were the pioneers of mass produced yet stylish furniture. Paul McCobb, an American designer prolific in the 1950’s, designed a range of knock down, modular, low cost furniture ‘for the people’ called ‘The Planner Group’ which now demands huge prices (I wish I hadn’t sold mine for peanuts!). Mark my words – Recycle that Billy Bookcase but hang onto your PS stuff!

My point is, IKEA makes ‘good design’ for the people – and sure, some of it (even a lot of it) is crap, but the bad stuff doesn’t negate the good stuff. Just because something is inexpensive doesn’t mean it’s bad, and just because something is expensive doesn’t mean it’s good! When shopping for good design, the first rule of thumb is to look at the DESIGN of the thing – don’t be romanced only by the label, but love the product first. If that product happens to be inexpensive – SCORE! What’s better? Good design at a great price. Embrace it. If you shop wisely and think ‘outside of the box’, you might end up with a future collectors item or something useful that you can cleverly modify into something that is not recognizably IKEA.

Above is a range of examples of Paul McCobb’s Planner Group ‘furniture for the people’, now highly collectable!