Headache:
How do you launch a new IKEA store in Washington DC during one of the most saturated media moments in history when every brand is competing for attention and the entire nation is focused on political change?
wow moment:
If America can embrace change in the White House, Americans can embrace change in their own homes. Position IKEA as the enabler of "domestic reform."
execution:
Timing and location turned everyday retail into a cultural moment using the new occupants of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue to illustrate how IKEA offers all Americans the tools to transform their living spaces.
activation:
A guerrilla campaign that inserted IKEA into the inauguration narrative.
Built a replica of the Oval Office inside Union Station, furnished entirely with IKEA products, showing thousands of commuters and visitors how IKEA would furnish the most important room in the world.
Deployed a "presidential" motorcade through DC streets loaded with IKEA furniture, suggesting Obama had taken IKEA's advice seriously.
The stunt hijacked the national conversation, generating 400+ unique media placements, 60+ minutes of broadcast coverage, and 500 million impressions. Local buzz became a national phenomenon—giving IKEA its greatest PR success in the brand's history.
here's the skinny:
Hijacked Inauguration Day to launch a Swedish furniture store
