After 70 long years, the Swedish furniture purveyor has announced that it will no longer print its signature catalogs.
“It has been one of our best-known and best-loved products for 70 years, inspiring billions of people around the world,” IKEA manager, Konrad Grüss, said in a statement. As ever fewer people were reading it, leading to the decision to “respectfully end the successful career of the IKEA catalog.”
Interestingly enough, the digital alternative to the paper print, which has been available since 1998, will also see its resignment in 2020.
The first IKEA catalog was released back in 1950, coming in Swedish only with just 16 pages of black and white illustrations. In 2016, the annual print reached its peak with 200 million copies in 32 different languages distributed worldwide, starting word that it was more circulated than the Bible.
To honor the catalog, IKEA will release a book filled with tips and inspirational ideas for DIY interior design, sometime in Autumn 2021.