Imagine the situation: you come to the authorities and admit that a defect was found in a large batch of goods – the products were released with an error. It is unlikely that the boss will be delighted and see some prospects in this. But the management of IKEA reacted to the problem differently. And it didn’t fail.
IKEA Singapore mistakenly released a huge run of KLAMBY bags with a typo missing one letter from the company’s email address, resulting in ikea.co.sg instead of ikea.com.sg on the bags.
Instead of recalling the product and recycling it, the company declared the defective batch a limited collection, thus openly admitting its mistake and even focusing everyone’s attention on it.
On the official product page, which usually gives a detailed description of the product, IKEA management explained its decision: “It’s normal for us to make mistakes at IKEA. We mistyped the address, but since KLAMBY bags are reusable, we are not going to recycle them. This is a limited collection – we will not have such bags anymore!
So one of the brand’s most boring products has a story that has already caused a lot of excitement among journalists and buyers. It seems that this case could be included in a training manual for marketers as an excellent example of how a world leader, when making a mistake, recognizes it with dignity and, even in a difficult situation, remains true to his core values - environmental friendliness and smart spending. But what is especially significant: he manages to turn a misstep into a profit, and a mistake into a coup. It is unlikely that history knows many such examples.
Well, those who are not related to marketing could once again be convinced that the giants of their business can get into trouble. This is fine. The main thing is to admit your mistake and find positive aspects in it. And they are always there, just often not obvious at first glance.