Sweden reclaims location names from IKEA

And now, the Swedish tourist board is reclaiming people names in a new internet marketing campaign, created to get folks recognizing the stylish originals, as well as the knock-offs.

That bathroom brush, for example, is named after Bolmen, a pretty, tree-fringed lake in the Småland area of southern Sweden.

And that trash can? Toftan is an additional wonderful lake — this time in the Dalarna location in the middle of the nation. Misterhult, in the meantime, also in Småland, is an enchanting archipelago of 2,000 islands — or a lamp.

Nils Perrson, chief marketing and advertising officer of Check out Sweden, claimed that he failed to begrudge IKEA the names.

“We are very pleased of IKEA and, in a way, you can say that they helped us make Swedish sites earth-renowned through the names they borrowed for their merchandise,” he explained in a assertion.

But he extra that now was the time to “exhibit the originals powering the item names.”

Not minimum mainly because, this sort of is the electrical power of IKEA, a very simple on line look for for these spots will normally pull up the product or service listing right before anything connected to the area.

Kallax, for instance, is more than an IKEA shelf — it really is a beautiful seaside place in Swedish Lapland, famed for its notably pungent fermented herring. And the forest of Höljes — identified to IKEA admirers as a lamp — is in point one particular of the the very least populated parts of Sweden.

There is certainly even a UNESCO-protected space in there — Bodviken, a mountain lake in the secured Superior Coast place of northern Sweden. IKEA has it as a washbasin.

‘More than a rest room brush’

For the campaign, a indicator reading “Welcome to Bolmen: more than an IKEA bathroom brush” was erected on the lakeside.

A spokesperson for Pay a visit to Sweden advised CNN: “The towns in the vicinity are very proud of this initiative to declare back the lake from staying acknowledged as an IKEA rest room brush and are totally powering it.” 

“We do enjoy that IKEA has named a products for our gorgeous lake… But now we would like to clearly show the world that Bolmen is so a lot much more than an product with which you cleanse your toilet,” stated Magnus Gunnarsson, a regional councilor, in a statement.

“It is an very wonderful spot, a great deal loved by us locals. We would like to invite the full world to invest time in our amazing, unspoiled pure ecosystem, exhibiting the very same care we do and enjoying the crystal-obvious water.”

A spokesperson for IKEA explained to CNN: “It is absolutely time for some of the sites whose names are made use of for some of our most well-liked solutions to also get some attention. They have earned it, to say the minimum.

“It is also excellent fun with an initiative that will help spreading the tale driving some of our merchandise names to the several persons.”

The 21 destinations Sweden is “reclaiming” from IKEA are as follows:

• Bolmen, a significant lake in the Småland region of southern Sweden (or toilet brush)

• Järvfjället, a mountain in Swedish Lapland (or gaming chair)

• Ektorp, a suburb of Stockholm (or a sofa)

• Skärhamn, a fishing village on the island of Tjörn (or door handle)

• Stubbarp, a city 300 miles south of Stockholm (or cabinet legs)

• Kallax, a village close to Luleå in Swedish Lapland (or storage shelf)

• Höljes, a forest in the Värmland location (or pendant lamp)

• Hemsjö, a village in the Blekinge location (or candle)

• Toftan, a lake in the Dalarna region (or trash can)

• Mästerby, an historical battleground on the island of Gotland (or a stool)

• Voxnan, a river with waterfalls and rapids in the Hälsingland area (or shower shelf)

• Himleån, area of ravines in the Halland region (or bath towel)

• Laxviken, a very village in the Jämtland Härjedalen location (or cupboard doorway)

• Ingatorp, a historical village in Småland (or extendable desk)

• Misterhult, a 2000-island archipelago in the vicinity of Kalmar in Småland (or bamboo lamp)

• Vrena, a village around the east coastline in the Sörmland region (or countertop)

• Björksta, a village close to Uppsala (or photograph frame)

• Norberg, a smaller city in Västmanland region (or folding table)

• Askersund, a town around Örebro in central Sweden (or cupboard door)

• Rimforsa, a smaller village in the Östergötland area of east Sweden (or operate bench)

• Bodviken, a mountain lake in the UNESCO Earth heritage place of the Significant Coast in northern Sweden (or washbasin)