Do You Make More Than $200K? If You Do, You're Not Invited to the IKEA Summer Sales Event, But IKEA Can Help You Pass the Time Until It's Over

Furniture World Magazine

Ahhh! The advantages of being rich fancy cars, big homes, yachts, expendable cash, servants, butlers. But now, thanks to IKEA, the rest of us can have something that the very rich can't. It's the IKEA Summer Sales Event from May 23rd to June 2nd. In conjunction with a new tongue-in-cheek advertising campaign that tells rich people they can't come to the Summer Sales Event, IKEA will be offering shoppers that earn more than $200,000 a year something to do while they're "banished" from the sale. If you are making $200,000 or more a year, IKEA invites you to send in a copy of your pay stub or tax returns as proof, and IKEA will send you a complimentary copy of the book War and Peace and a FREE IKEA ESPRESSIVO work lamp (valued at $7.95). All you have to do is have your butler send your name, address and copy of your proof to: "Some Things Money Can't Buy"c/o Jericho Communications 304 Hudson Street - 7th Floor, New York, NY 10013 Deadline for entries: June 21, 2003. Only available to the first 500 that respond "Our marketing efforts for the Summer Sales Event has been based on a fun and never-seen-before strategy," explained Christian Mathieu, external marketing manager, IKEA USA/Canada. "In a playful way, we kindly ask people who earn lots and lots of money to hold onto their wallets until after our sale when we return to our every day low prices. We did, however, keep in mind that rich people still needed something to pass the time when they couldn't come to the store during the sale and we figured IKEA could really help them out with a free copy of War and Peace and a free IKEA reading lamp, of course." The IKEA Summer Sales Event advertising campaign is supported by direct mail, print ads, as well as radio and billboards. In addition, there will be "Very Rich Detectors" located at the front entrance of IKEA stores. Since its founding in 1943, IKEA has offered a wide range of home furnishings and accessories of good design and function, at prices so low that the majority of the people can afford them. IKEA is recognized as a socially responsible company, and continuously supports initiatives that benefit causes such as children and the environment. Currently, IKEA has 165 stores in 31 countries, including 15 stores in the United States and nine stores in Canada. To visit the IKEA web site, please go to http://www.ikea-us.com.