Something which was concerning him was the fact that his three sons would argue over who was going to take over the business when he retired. Ingvar Kamprad did not like the idea of his business splitting up. When he retired he opted to set up a charitable organisation which would take over the business and so that it would be run independently and securely.
However Ingvar Kamprad also decided to sell to a charitable organisation because of the advantages that charities have got, as they have fewer taxes to pay to government and also because he knew that there would not be any shareholders to distribute the dividends to the shareholders. Each time the Ikea logo is used Ingvar Kamprad still gets a fraction of the profits, so Kamprad is still benefiting from the business even tough he is no longer the owner of the business.
Here is a chart to show how Ikea is operated at present.
From this chart we can se that all the different sectors of business are now owned by the Stichting Ingka foundation, who have full control over the activities of Ikea, except for the fact that they have to pay a fraction of their profits for each time that they use Ingvar Kamprad’s Ikea logo.
Aims and Objectives
Ikea aim to create a better everyday life for people to get there, their objective to do so is to make sure that they have got a product which is long lasting easy to assemble and reliable so that their customer is always satisfied. They also aim to make good use of recycled materials for example they recycle left over furniture or furniture which does not sell, their objective to do this is to use the recycled materials to make newer products. Ikea also aims to keep the prices of their furniture and other appliances low-cost, the objective that they follow to do this is that they keep an eye on the prices their competitors offer and they lower the price even further.
Location
There’s over a 150 Ikea stores worldwide, 12 of which are spread out across the UK. The Ikea store that we are focusing on is located in Wednesbury it was opened in 1990; this is a very good location for the store as they are located near a motorway so this brings in more customers as cars are travelling in from all directions. It is also very good to be located by a motorway as it provides better transport links.
It is good for Ikea because they have got competitors nearby; it is good for Ikea to have competitors nearby because if people are going to visit other competitive shops just opposite, this will provide more business coming Ikeas way as more people will stop off at other shops and decide to pop into Ikea to have a browse and as Ikea provides such great prices customers will be tempted to buy from them instead of their oppositions. It is also very good because Ikea has its very own restaurant this is also good because if people fancy a bite to eat they can stop off at Ikea and eat there.
A motorway locates them, as it’s closer to their customers, a motorway also situates Ikea and it’s open in the Midlands because it’s easier for them to find highly qualified staff, as Birmingham is a densely populated area.
Lansing Linde
Activity
Lansing Linde is a company whom focus on the manufacturing, retailing and hiring out of forklift trucks, they are into material handling as well as helping out with the logistics, as well as focusing on warehousing equipment and ex-proofed trucks. They are also part of the secondary and tertiary sectors as they manufacture the trucks and they provide a service of either hiring them out or selling them to other businesses, although they do not sell their produce to the general public they only sell to other businesses.
As with Ikea I feel Lansing Linde is also a business which is constantly looking to expand their business this is because of the fact that they are also part of the two sectors in which many people tend to chose to work in. They are also looking to expand because there are many skilled workers in the manufacturing industry looking for work and so they may expand in order to create work for people who have got skills in that area.
Ownership
Lansing Linde is a privately owned limited company this means that they do not have to deal with the hassle of distributing out dividends to shareholders. The company is owned by the Linde family and the workers and it is not partly owned by anyone in the general public. Lansing Linde originated in the suburbs of London in two places called Mortlake and Isleworth in 1943.
Lansing Bagnall Ltd as it was known back then was rapidly growing into the leading manufactures of material handlings equipment. The two founders E. Kaye and J.R Sharpe saw that there was a bright future ahead and so in 1949 they moved their business to their current site up in Basingstoke.
In 1989 Lansing Linde made an even greater step towards achieving greater success which is when they joined the German based, world leading Linde group and they renamed their company Lansing Linde Ltd. Linde invested a huge amount into the Basingstoke based company and they proved to be a major and highly successful company. They are still well known for their high quality produce and services and are still very successful in the business world today.
Aims and Objectives
Lancing Linde aim to make sure that their trucks that they sell are up to the requirements of the buyer, the objective which helps them to achieve this is their service and support centre. Ikea also aim to make sure that all employees in their manufacturing area have got access to their own laptop in case they have trouble with their truck and need quick advice on how to fix it, the objective they use to achieve this is to provide each worker with their own laptop computer. A Main aim that Lansing Linde focus on is to respond to a customers needs as quickly as possible, the reach this aim by following the objective of having 24 hour call-out facilities.
Location
Lansing Linde are located anywhere across the UK where they know that there are going to be major businesses around to invest in their product but their main head quarters are situated in Germany, but the one we are focusing on is the one which is situated locally to us, which is in West Bromwich. Being located in West Bromwich is very beneficial to Lansing Linde as West Bromwich is a town centre and there are many people who live round the area. Many people also travel in from Birmingham, so there are many people who live around the area, who may have very good skills and could be looking for work this is a great opportunity for them, as Lansing Linde can provide them with jobs and at the same time look to expand their business.
There is also the fact of having good transport links around for example the motorways and road links, as they have to get their product to the consumer it is good having motorways nearby as it is easier to transport goods to a place further away whereas if it is near you can just transport it by travelling on the roads. It is also good for Lansing Linde to be located in West Bromwich because of the fact that there are many big industrial businesses located around their and also in Birmingham so their products will be selling better and they will make large amounts of profits.
