Ikea has been busy with a slew of designer collaborations lately, including a Millennial-focused collection with Virgil Abloh, founder of red-hot fashion label Off-White. First announced at the Swedish retailer’s Democratic Design Days event this past June, the collaboration has already given birth to an Off-White take on Ikea’s now iconic Frakta shopping bag, and now, a rug?
Yesterday, Abloh posted an Instagram (and a Periscope live stream) from Ikea’s prototype shop in Älmhult, Sweden, showing off a traditional patterned rug emblazoned with his signature text in all caps and quotation marks. Another ’gram reveals the full text: “KEEP OFF.” Fair enough.
The collection, which is due to drop sometime in 2019, is expected to offer a full range of products for young people to furnish their first homes. “It wouldn’t make sense to first come out with a chair and then you sit and wait one year. ‘OK, when is the table coming? OK, now I need to wait for the bed,’” says Ikea Creative Leader Henrik Most at the recent Fashion Tech Forum conference held in Culver City, California.
To this end, the product development process may involve some crowdsourcing, with Abloh potentially visiting student dorm rooms for inspiration, according to the LA Times.
Ikea has rolled out a few big releases this fall already, including a collaboration with Danish design brand Hay and the company’s first-ever collection for pets.
Courtesy of Curbed