The Ikea effect: How Ingvar Kamprad's company changed the way we shop

Ikea first brought out its now signature style of flat-pack furniture in the 1950s

Ingvar Kamprad, who started Ikea as a teenager, has died at the age of 91. He started with stationery and stockings, but went on to build one of the world’s biggest furniture companies. And the way he did it has revolutionised how retailers operate.

There are two facets of modern life that we have Ikea to thank for: flat-pack furniture and a shop layout that gets you buying more of its products than you initially intended to. Both are principles that a number of other companies have put to good use.

Ikea first brought out its now signature style