Vintage IKEA designs in auction
Over 200 lots of vintage IKEA designs are going under the hammer in an online auction coinciding with the highly anticipated opening of the new store from the Swedish manufacturer on Oxford Street, London.
Auctionet is hosting the largest ever sale of classic IKEA furniture and items, from its early days right up to the present.
Titled IKEA Through the Ages, the sale’s highlights includes cult classics by iconic designers such as Karin Mobring, Gillis Lundgren, and Niels Gammelgaard – from Mobring’s safari chair Diana, to Lundgren’s mid-century Eker spindle chair, and Gammelgaard’s 1980s icon, the Guide bookshelf.
The auction showcases iconic pieces from each decade, as well as some of the brand’s rarest and most elusive creations like the “Holken” hanging chair, meant to be suspended from a tree during the wild, nature-loving 1970s – it represents one of the biggest collections of IKEA history.
Also featured are rare and little-seen gems: the outdoor Holken rocking chair, the modular Mella sofa from the early 1990s, two examples of the 1960s armchair Puck, and Rutger Andersson’s elusive Karelen collection – which, despite widespread media attention at its launch, never made it into Swedish IKEA catalogues.
Beyond furniture, the sale includes vintage lamps, cutlery, porcelain, and a trove of IKEA catalogues, including hard-to-find editions from the 1950s.
To mark the launch, new research from online auction marketplace Auctionet and Censuswide reveals that IKEA has stood the test of time: as many as 46% believe their IKEA items have become more valuable to them over time.
The nationally representative survey of 2,000 UK adults also reveals that IKEA is officially vintage, with 43% of Brits responding that IKEA holds emotional value for them, while 57% believe IKEA never goes out of fashion – peaking at 66% among Millennials. Nostalgia runs so deep that 34% of those surveyed say they would buy rare or discontinued IKEA items at auction, rising to 55% of 25–34-year-olds, and a further 32% of people consider IKEA to be collectible.
“As IKEA’s Oxford Street flagship opens its doors, there’s never been a better moment to reflect on how the Swedish giant has shaped our homes and lives,” commented Andreas Siesing, one of Sweden’s leading design historians and Auctionet’s in-house IKEA and interiors expert. “IKEA isn’t just a shopping destination, it’s a rite of passage, a relationship stress-test, a cultural institution, and even a source of culinary delight. As Brits continue to seek out timeless, quality design, IKEA is far from disposable – we’re seeing increasing interest in IKEA’s early collections that are now coveted by collectors.”