IKEA has been putting the planet at the centre of its messaging, at least metaphorically, and now Earth is the star of its latest.
The spot, “Our Little World,” by agency Rethink shows multiple fantastical mini-planet Utopias of orbiting cyclists, birds, comfortable beds and treehouses, where individuals each inhabit their own worlds, and of course, do sustainable actions like carting off a box of recycling or hanging laundry out to dry.
“Through this latest spot, we wanted to show that sustainability and positive change is still possible with small actions taken at home, while acknowledging the shared experiences and challenges of the last year, and really celebrating the way communities have come together to face them,” according to Johanna Andrén, head of marketing, IKEA Canada.
“We wanted to create a bright, airy, inspiring world of little worlds and think that the many layers and intricate details, along with the spot-on music is a wonderful dreamscape to resonate with our customers,” she adds, adding that typically early spring is a season of acknowledging climate positive actions. “We wanted to pull on both our life at home expertise, and our people and planet positive sustainability ambitions in this ambitious production,” Andrén adds.
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“A better world starts at home” is the spot’s tagline. And the creative once again leans into the Swedish retailer’s sustainability priorities. The campaign builds on messaging surrounding the cumulative power of doing little acts as planet stewards. It also emphasizes the circular economy, which the brand has done by getting consumers to donate their gently-used furniture or turning kitchen scraps into other meals in its recently launched “ScrapsBook.”
While the retailer turned its eyes to the skies in its latest work, previous pandemic efforts were more grounded, with lessons learned from home and finding the silver lining of lockdowns and putting struggles into perspective.
The campaign will be supported by online video, DOOH, social, and digital units that highlight sustainable IKEA products in their own micro-worlds. The 3D animation for social, digital, and OOH was handled by VFX studio SHED out of Montreal.
Andrén tells strategy this campaign was one of the brand’s “most ambitious and advanced productions to date,” though investment was aligned with past efforts like “One Little Thing.”
The film was shot in Toronto on a soundstage over three days and required complex CG and post-production from visual effects house A52 and Scouts Honour.
The spot will air nationally in Canada, as well as in Serbia, Romania, and Croatia.
Last month, IKEA unveiled a plant-based Swedish meatball, which the brand says only has 4% of the climate footprint as the traditional meatball and contributes to the retailer’s plans to be climate positive by 2030. It also unveiled a small-format store in downtown Toronto, focused on small-space living.