The Ikea furniture that has been around for up to 30 years – and you can still buy today
The flatpack retailer opened its first store in the UK in 1987. But some of its pieces are still sold today for a significantly lower price
IKEA has filled every home in the UK for 30 years.
The Scandinavian firm, set up by Ingvar Kamprad in 1948, opened its first UK store in Warrington on October 1, 1987.
It has since become the UK's largest furniture retailer with 20 stores across the country.
It also introduced Brits to Scandinavian designs at affordable prices, flatpack assembly misery and of course, meatballs.
But while style and trends have changed over the years, some of its pieces from the 80s are still sold today - and most of them are also cheaper.
The Lack coffee table, the Billy bookcase, the Klippan sofa or the Poang armchair have literally become part of the furniture since their launch in the eighties.
But their prices have decreased by up to 70 per cent.
Laura Addison, Country Sales Manager for IKEA UK & Ireland said that at the heart of the Ikea concept is the idea to provide a range of quality home furnishing products that are affordable to "many people, not just the few".
Check if you have any of these at home and how prices compare:
LACK coffee table - Launch price £18, now retails for £5
Launched in Sweden in 1981, UK 1987
A Lack coffee table now retails for just £5.
This is more than a 70 per cent discount compared to 1987 when Brits would buy it for £18.
Laura Addison from Ikea said: “The Lack table is a perfect example of how we have honed a design.
"Most notably, we developed the Board-on-Frame technique (which we now use in lots of other products in the range) which is just as durable as solid wood but uses less resources and is lighter so that we can put more on a palette, and transport with less fuel, reducing costs both in production and delivery which we could then pass on to our customers.”
BILLY bookcase – Launch price £43, now retails for £35
Launched in Sweden in 1979, UK 1987
The Billy bookcase was already a hit when it launched in 1987.
At that time it cost as much as £43.
The item comes with adjustable shelves, which means you can adapt the space between shelves according to your needs.
It now retails for just £36 and one is sold every ten seconds, according to Ikea.
KLIPPAN sofa – Launch price £299, now retails for £159
Launched in Sweden in 1979, UK 1987
A Klippan sofa now cost £159 compared to £299 in 1987 - a 50 per cent discount.
The sofa now comes with extra covers to alternate which means it's easy to give both your sofa and room a new look.
MAMMUT stool – Launch price £14, now retails for £5.50
Launched in Sweden and in the UK in 1997
Collapsible chairs and multi-purpose stackable stools are among Ikea's flagship products.
This model cost £14 when it was first introduced in the UK in 1997.
It will now cost you just £5.50 to have it at home.
POANG armchair –Launch price £98, now retails for £75
Launched in Sweden in 1976, UK 1987
The Poang armchair is also turning 30 this year.
It has one new frame and six covers to add to the existing range of combinations.
It also cost just £75 compared to £98 when it first launched in 1987.
FROSTA stool - Launch price £8.50, now retails for £9.00
Launched in Sweden and in the UK in 1992
The Frosta stool is the only item on the list that has slightly gone up in price since it was launched in the 90s.
It now retails for £9 compared to £8.50 when it first launched.
Ikea's birthday
To mark the occasion the retailer is throwing the "ultimate house party" or more specifically an exhibition into three decades of British homes in Central London.
Visitors will get a snapshot of what their living rooms looked like from the eighties right up to today.
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The exhibition, which runs until Saturday October 21, includes DJ booths playing tunes from each period.
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