The Swedish Feeding Trough
January 3rd, 2006
Image: DDP
“…In 2004 the Swedish company, with its 37 restaurants, managed to reach
11th place in the list of the best-earning eateries in Germany. That put it well
ahead of the café stores like Tchibo and the giant bakery chain Kamps, which has
1,000 branches. In Germany, one out of every 20 euros spent at IKEA is doled out
for the company’s cheap menu meals, comprising a total of €141 million last year
alone. The largest Ikea restaurant, with space for 640 guests, is in the Berlin
working class area of Tempelhof. Across the country the company’s eateries cater
to 14,000 visitors.
11th place in the list of the best-earning eateries in Germany. That put it well
ahead of the café stores like Tchibo and the giant bakery chain Kamps, which has
1,000 branches. In Germany, one out of every 20 euros spent at IKEA is doled out
for the company’s cheap menu meals, comprising a total of €141 million last year
alone. The largest Ikea restaurant, with space for 640 guests, is in the Berlin
working class area of Tempelhof. Across the country the company’s eateries cater
to 14,000 visitors.
The customers are a colorful mix of people: pensioners meet up with
single-parents, managers with garbage collectors. “The Ikea restaurant is a
modern meeting point for all kinds of people. It’s a sort of social living
room,” says Gretel Weiss, who works for the magazine Food Service. Some people
even celebrate their birthday in this “social living room.”
single-parents, managers with garbage collectors. “The Ikea restaurant is a
modern meeting point for all kinds of people. It’s a sort of social living
room,” says Gretel Weiss, who works for the magazine Food Service. Some people
even celebrate their birthday in this “social living room.”
The main draw is the price: a hot dog costs €1, a beer €1.30 and apple pie
and vanilla sauce 50 cents. On average guests at an Ikea restaurant spend €4.30
per meal — a price which allows them to eat in a half-way decent atmosphere
instead of grappling with food packed in plastic at fast-food chain stores.
“When I go out to eat with the family, I go to Ikea. I can afford that,” says
Stephan Panther. The 47-year-old taxi driver from Hamburg earns just €1,200 per
month, before tax, to feed his four children…”
and vanilla sauce 50 cents. On average guests at an Ikea restaurant spend €4.30
per meal — a price which allows them to eat in a half-way decent atmosphere
instead of grappling with food packed in plastic at fast-food chain stores.
“When I go out to eat with the family, I go to Ikea. I can afford that,” says
Stephan Panther. The 47-year-old taxi driver from Hamburg earns just €1,200 per
month, before tax, to feed his four children…”
“IKEA: The Swedish Feeding Trough”
By Gerald Drissner
SPIEGEL ONLINE
