IKEA gives a bike to ALL U.S. employees

From: http://bikeportland.org/2010/12/07/see-the-bike-ikea-just-gave-all-...

See the bike IKEA just gave all 12,400 of its U.S. employees

Posted by Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor) on December 7th, 2010 at 2:50 pm



A family ride to IKEA-2.jpg
Every IKEA employee in the U.S. now
owns a bicycle. See which one below.
(Photo © J. Maus)

As you might have already heard, global furniture retailer IKEA gave out a free bike as a thank you gift to all 12,400 of their U.S. employees today (including 350 of them at
the Portland location).

In a statement about the gifts, IKEA US President Mike Ward said:

"It's been a good year for IKEA, so what better way to celebrate our success than to thank our IKEA co-workers who made this happen. Our big reveal today will be a fun day as we unload 12,400 new
bikes at IKEA US locations. This is our way of saying 'thanks IKEA
co-workers for being strongly committed to working together.' We hope
this bike will be taken in the spirit of the season while supporting a
healthy lifestyle and everyday sustainable transport."

Given IKEA's European roots, I was very curious what type of bike they'd hand out. From the photo below (supplied by their PR firm), it looks like they went with something more typical of the American market.
The bike has a mountain-bike inspired frame, an upright stem and bars,
and a triple-chainring up front. I can't tell the make or model because
the frame has been customized with IKEA colors on the downtube.

(Photo: IKEA US)

It's great to see a large company like IKEA make such big statement about the benefits of bicycling. Hopefully other companies will follow suit. The savings in employee health claims alone will likely make this
a very smart investment.


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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Alan Lloyd on December 8, 2010 at 3:40pm
I only know the short (Meacham) stretch from McConnor Pkwy over I-90 to the Schaumburg conference center, but I thought that part was okay. usually I ride along McConnor Pkway and cross Meacham.

M.A.R.K. said:
There is a sidewalk on Meacham, and the last time I rode on it it was in terrible shape from Algonquin until you get over 90. littered with broken glass, stone and whatever else has been dropped or thrown out of windows. Has all that been cleaned up and in better condition? Is that(what looks to be a greenway)path new on the east side of the street? I actually have to go there on Friday, so it would help me a great deal to know, I gotta hit up the DMV for a new state id.



Alan Lloyd said:
There is a bike path running along McConnor Pkwy and along a lot of Meacham ...
http://tinyurl.com/28mqcpc



M.A.R.K. said:
That is what I was thinking..

Plus the IKEA here in Schaumburg does not have any access by bike being bordered by 2 Hwys., Golf to the South and Meacham to the west, both of which are like expressways. Well at least Meacham is.



Duppie said:
Looks like a cheap made-in-China piece of crap.
Fits well with the cheap made-in-China crap they sell in their stores
Permalink Reply by Alan Lloyd on December 8, 2010 at 3:42pm
I seem to remember them wanting ramps directly onto & off of I-90 for the store in Schaumburg, but didn't get them! They may have even offered to pay something towards their construction? No help to cyclists, of course.

H3N3 said:
I don't feel like digging for any supporting articles right now, but IKEA does have a history of only considering accessibility to major highways when choosing new sites. There was one about 10 years ago that they wanted to open relatively equidistant to several secondary British cities (with the idea that -everyone- has to drive there, of course) but the local government asked that IKEA help pat for some of the automotive infrastructure that would move customers to and from their store, and IKEA promptly lost interest.
About 8 years ago IKEA was looking for a second site in Chicago; some may remember that they were initially looking at the Elston/Armitage area but it was shot down because it was thought the infrastructure would not be able to handle the car traffic; shortly therafter it was reported that they were lookinig at 33rd/Damen where ultimately a Target was built-- easy on/off to the Stevenson; ultimately they claimed that the city was not willing to offer adequate incentives; they ended up putting that store outside of Minneapolis instead (hey-- you could probably make the trip in 5 1/2 hours if you didn't stop, right?).
The Orange line actually crosses the property they were looking at at 33rd/Damen-- imagine what a gesture it would be if they helped fund a stop =inside= IKEA.
Shortly thereafter it was confirmed that IKEA was supposed to be part of the Rez-Mar development at Roosevelt/Clark, but that crashed and burned. Same deal-- the red and orange lines meet on that property I think-- they could have had a transfer station attached to the store.



jamimaria said:
It certainly would have been nice to see a more commuter friendly bike being give out, but at least it's something! Maybe next they could encourage their stores to lobby for easier bike access in the suburban messes where most of their stores are located. Right now I'd be kind of scared to ride my bike to an ikea store.
Permalink Reply by Mark Kenseth on December 9, 2010 at 2:53am
Oh, I'm looking at the bright side. You have a great point. I hope other employers promote bike riders. I posted the article because it's a move in the right direction, but if IKEA wants to get their employees to ride a bike to work, it's not the best bike. If they want the young and middle aged employees to go ride around the trails, good bike. I'd be happy with it...if I could put a rack on the back of it. I wonder if it's rackable.

Julie Hochstadter said:
Well, maybe it will at least encourage other employers to do the same (hopefully better quality bikes and companies that make shopping more accessible to cyclists).

Can't help but try to look on the bright side of things sometimes...

Mark Kenseth said:
When I read the headline initially I was happy, then I saw the bike and I was sad, because the bikes are not commuter type bikes. It might be a lot of work for some people to find accessories to make it a commuter bike, let alone bike to the store. Couldn't IKEA have consulted a biking organization?

Permalink Reply by Duppie on December 9, 2010 at 4:32am
H3N3 said:
Looks like a seatpost rack is the only option apart from kludging a standard rack on there somehow.
Who's going to post the first eBay/cl IKEA bike listing?

Done
Permalink Reply by igz on December 9, 2010 at 4:43am
great way to be ungrateful.

if the employees dont want the bikes, they should be regifted to someone who could use them or truely appreciate them.
Permalink Reply by Tank-Ridin' Ryan on December 9, 2010 at 4:58am
Seriously? I'm sure every business would like this. (I'd like to see a concept drawing of the mess - cloverleaf interchanges as far as the eye can see.)

Alan Lloyd said:
I seem to remember them wanting ramps directly onto & off of I-90 for the store in Schaumburg, but didn't get them! They may have even offered to pay something towards their construction? No help to cyclists, of course.
Permalink Reply by Mark Kenseth on December 9, 2010 at 5:46am
Wow. $39 as of right now.

Duppie said:
H3N3 said:
Looks like a seatpost rack is the only option apart from kludging a standard rack on there somehow.
Who's going to post the first eBay/cl IKEA bike listing?

Done
Permalink Reply by Duppie on December 9, 2010 at 5:59am
Interesting. Thanks for posting
My main beef with "that" retailer has always been the enormous land requirements for their developments. At least they are adopting to the dense neighborhood by offering no surface parking.
All other concerns that I have about this retailer have little to do with their choice of location.

H3N3 said:
Not quite momentous enough for its own thread, but guess which retailer is looking at Broadway and Diversey?
Permalink Reply by Mark Kenseth on December 9, 2010 at 6:02am
I wonder what bike Mr. Kamprad rides.
http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9JSBRSG0.htm

"Swiss business magazine Bilanz says Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad's fortune rose by 3 billion Swiss francs ($3 billion) over the past year. Bilanz says Swedish-born Kamprad tops the list of Switzerland's 300 richest individuals and families for the ninth straight year. It estimates the furniture magnate's total fortune at 38-39 billion francs."
Permalink Reply by Holly on December 9, 2010 at 6:09am
Does Mr. Kamprad have a Serotta? Hee hee.

I hate Ikea. I wanted to like it, but it hates me. Every time I've ever gone there, I've left the place feeling either suicidal or homicidal.

The bike giveaway gesture is very nice, but you know this type of bike will not be ridden to work without modifications.
Permalink Reply by Barry Niel Stuart on December 9, 2010 at 10:55am
Not all bikes made in China are cheap department store bikes. Many entry-level road, mountain, hybrid, and comfort bikes sold at bike shops are made in China. At one time, Taiwanese makers were making cheap crap. Remember all those bikes given away at American of Madison with a TV? I own a Jamis touring bike made in China and have little to complain about. Maybe bike makers should look into making bikes in the Marianas, Marshall Islands, or Guam to get around dollar exchange costs and tariffs.

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