Brands
Home truths IKEA bets on Indian dreams with a new brand chapter
From kitchens to classrooms, IKEA reframes how Indian homes shape ambition.
MUMBAI: If India is dreaming bigger than ever, IKEA is pulling up a chair at the starting point. The Swedish home furnishings major has unveiled a new brand position for the country, It All Starts at Home signalling a shift from retail introduction to long-term emotional relevance in one of its most important growth markets.
The idea taps into a simple but powerful insight, Indian homes are no longer static spaces. Kitchens double up as studios, balconies become classrooms, bedrooms host businesses, workouts and late-night ambitions. Tradition and modernity now share the same square footage. IKEA’s new positioning celebrates homes as living, evolving foundations where everyday routines quietly shape bigger aspirations.
Since entering India in 2018, IKEA’s journey has mirrored this transformation. What began as an effort to familiarise shoppers with its stores, prices and life-at-home philosophy has grown into something more embedded. According to the company, top-of-mind recall has climbed sharply from four per cent at launch to 43 per cent today reflecting IKEA’s move from novelty to everyday relevance.
IKEA India CEO Patrik Antoni said the shift comes from listening closely to how Indians live today. Expectations from home have expanded, and the brand now sees its role as removing physical, financial and psychological barriers between people and their dream spaces. The ambition is clear, reach twice as many consumers while staying present across homes of every size, budget and aspiration.
The strategy also lays out IKEA’s next phase of growth. The focus will be on accessibility through multiple formats, deeper online penetration and service-led touchpoints across more cities. Small spaces, multifunctional living and everyday family needs areas where Indian homes are changing fastest will take centre stage.
The new brand direction will roll out through a 360-degree approach, spanning films, digital and social content, creator collaborations and in-store experiences, reinforced across IKEA’s website and app. Rather than shouting about products, the storytelling places them quietly in the background of real lives and real ambitions.
Earlier today, IKEA India released its brand manifesto, followed by the first of three films. The opening story features Kabita Singh, the Youtube creator behind Kabita’s Kitchen, who built a following of 15 million subscribers starting from a modest home kitchen, a fitting illustration of the brand’s core message.
In a market crowded with bold claims, IKEA’s latest move is deliberately understated. By rooting its growth story in the everyday realities of Indian homes, the brand is betting that the most powerful journeys still begin exactly where people live.
Brands
Lululemon picks former Nike executive to be its next chief
Heidi O’Neill, who helped grow Nike into a $45 billion giant, will take the top job in September
CANADA: Lululemon has found its next chief executive, and she comes with serious credentials. The athleisure giant named Heidi O’Neill as its new CEO on Wednesday, ending a search that has left the company running on interim leadership since earlier this year. O’Neill will take charge on September 8, 2026, based out of Vancouver, and will join the board on the same day.
O’Neill brings more than three decades of experience across performance apparel, footwear and sport. The bulk of that time was spent at Nike, where she was a central figure in one of corporate sport’s great growth stories, helping take the company from a $9 billion business to a $45 billion global powerhouse. She oversaw product pipelines, brand strategy and consumer connections, and played a significant role in shaping how Nike spoke to athletes around the world. Earlier in her career, she worked in marketing for the Dockers brand at Levi Strauss. She also brings boardroom experience from Spotify Technology, Hyatt Hotels and Lithia and Driveway.
The board was unequivocal in its enthusiasm. “We selected Heidi because of the breadth of her experience, her demonstrated success delivering breakthrough ideas and initiatives at scale, and her ability to be a knowledgeable change and growth agent,” said Marti Morfitt, executive chair of Lululemon’s board.
O’Neill, for her part, was bullish. “Lululemon is an iconic brand with something rare: genuine guest love, a product ethos rooted in innovation, and a global platform still in the early stages of its potential,” she said. “My job will be to accelerate product breakthroughs, deepen the brand’s cultural relevance, and unlock growth in markets around the world.”
Until she arrives, Meghan Frank and André Maestrini will continue as interim co-CEOs, before returning to their previous senior leadership roles once O’Neill steps in.
Lululemon is betting that a Nike veteran who helped build one of the world’s most powerful sports brands can do something similar for an athleisure label that has genuine love from its customers but is still chasing its full global potential. O’Neill has done it before at scale. The question now is whether she can do it again.
