IKEA: IKEA Preowned
IKEA Spain wanted to address the contradiction between its 100% circularity goals and the consumer perception that affordable furniture is disposable. To build trust and drive sustainability, the brand needed to facilitate a reliable way for budget-conscious, eco-friendly consumers to trade used items, keeping furniture out of landfills and proving its long-term durability.
Creative Idea
IKEA launched a commission-free marketplace and advertised its customers' used furniture on its own media.
IKEA launched 'Preowned,' a commission-free peer-to-peer marketplace, and turned its own advertising channels into classified ads for customers' used furniture, proving product durability and helping the brand achieve its 100% circularity goal.
The Peer to Peer Platform with Zero Profit
Turning Corporate Media into Classifieds
To launch the peer-to-peer marketplace, IKEA took the unusual step of handing over its own highly valued advertising space - including social media channels, out-of-home (OOH) billboards, and television spots - to its customers. Instead of promoting new products, these channels were transformed into free classified ads for individuals trying to sell their used IKEA furniture.
To make listing items as seamless as buying them new, the platform integrated directly with IKEA's main digital infrastructure. Sellers were given access to professional tools from the official website, automatically populating their listings with precise measurements, high-quality photography, and original assembly manuals. IKEA facilitated this entire exchange without taking any commission or making any profit, focusing entirely on keeping furniture in homes and out of landfills.
Millions of Visits and Thousands of Listings
The initiative proved that consumers were ready to embrace a circular economy when given the right infrastructure. The campaign generated 3.6 million website visits and resulted in 26,700 used IKEA items listed on the platform.
The marketplace also drove significant brand engagement and acquisition, drawing in +75,000 new buyers and sellers and registering 23,700 new IKEA Family members. Crucially, the platform succeeded in building consumer confidence, with 83% of users stating they think it is a trustworthy marketplace.
The Creative Team Behind the Launch
The campaign was created by lead creative agency McCann Spain (specifically the McCann Madrid office), under the leadership of Chief Creative Officer Eoin Sherry, Executive Creative Director Miguel Madariaga, Chief Strategy Officer Lucas Rodríguez, and Strategy Director María Goñi. They collaborated with iProspect for media planning, MRM Spain for digital and CRM, and Tinkle alongside Apple Tree for PR.
Creative Strategy Deconstructed
Company
IKEA could leverage its vast product database, assembly manuals, and professional photography to elevate peer-to-peer second-hand furniture sales.
Category
Furniture brands typically push consumers to buy new products, treating older items as disposable and ignoring the secondary market entirely.
Customer
Consumers wanted to live more sustainably but found selling used furniture online to be a complicated, untrustworthy, and tedious process.
Culture
A growing global demand for circular economies and sustainable living clashed with the financial necessity of affordable, long-lasting home goods.
Company
IKEA could leverage its vast product database, assembly manuals, and professional photography to elevate peer-to-peer second-hand furniture sales.
Category
Furniture brands typically push consumers to buy new products, treating older items as disposable and ignoring the secondary market entirely.
Strategy:
Launch a commission-free marketplace that turns IKEA's own advertising into listings for customers' used furniture.
Customer
Consumers wanted to live more sustainably but found selling used furniture online to be a complicated, untrustworthy, and tedious process.
Culture
A growing global demand for circular economies and sustainable living clashed with the financial necessity of affordable, long-lasting home goods.
Strategy:
Launch a commission-free marketplace that turns IKEA's own advertising into listings for customers' used furniture.
Results
IKEA Preowned proved consumers will embrace a circular economy when given the right tools. The marketplace generated 3.6M website visits and reached 26,700 used IKEA items listed, while drawing +75K new buyers and sellers and 23,700 new IKEA Family members. Crucially, 83% of users said they consider it a trustworthy marketplace.
26,700
used IKEA items listed
3.6M
website visits
+75K
new buyers and sellers
Strategy Technique
Build an Utility, Not an Ad
Instead of just talking about circularity, IKEA built a fully functional, commission-free peer-to-peer marketplace. This utility provided real-world proof of product durability while actively helping customers extend the lifecycle of their furniture.
Explore Technique
Creative Technique
Hijack the Medium
IKEA hijacked its own paid advertising spaces to promote individual customers' used furniture listings. This unexpected media usage proved the brand's commitment to circularity while driving direct traffic to the new marketplace.
Explore Technique
Craft Breakdown
The campaign excels by seamlessly integrating utility design with media planning, turning IKEA's commercial channels into a public classifieds network.
The creation of a seamless, commission-free platform integrated with IKEA's official product data made listing used furniture effortless.
Donating prime OOH, TV, and social ad spaces to showcase individual users' second-hand listings was a brilliant, high-impact media strategy.
“The synergy between a highly functional digital service and the disruptive media strategy turned a corporate sustainability promise into a tangible community action.”
