11       frequently asked questions what inspires you most? books and art exhibitions. what do you spend the most time doing? working and travelling. what does beauty mean to you? it depends on what we’re talking about. your favourite place at home? that would have to be the kitchen. furniture world how does a company manage to produce furniture that fits into almost every home around the whole world? furniture that makes living rooms and bedrooms comfortable from saudi arabia to australia, from germany to portugal? how do you manage to create items of furniture without any cultural or social limitations that are still modern and affordable? lars engmann, ikea head designer, has all the simple, typically swedish answers. you have to be very close to the people to observe and know their feelings and longings so well that you are able to offer the right product at the right time. after all, the demands are particularly high and difficult when it comes to people’s homes, where they literally express their personalities through their furniture, where they want to reveal their individuality and where it’s basically all about such important concepts as security and well-being. so if you have managed to step into this intimate area of life, you have really understood people. ikea knows people really well, always listens to them, knows what young and old people dream of, knows what parents and children want and knows that it’s all about respect and joy. actually, ikea is based on one simple principle: creating satisfaction. of course furniture has to be functional, elegant and affordable but that’s not such a terribly difficult thing to do, is it? in the following interview, ikea head designer lars engmann talks about people’s basic needs, billy and sweden. dear lars, we are living in a rather dynamic world that is characterised by permanent changes and many difficulties. do you think that people’s homes have become their last place of refuge where they can find inner peace and contentment? let’s put it this way: ikea’s mission is to try and help people organize their lives and give them more time for relaxing. thus, we create the basis for peace and security. what do you think are the basic aspects of a “comfortable” home in terms of furniture, material and design? i would say a home is comfortable if it’s as light, airy and loud as possible. “billy & co.” in london, beijing, kuwait and malaysia – the success of the “ikea phenomenon” is largely due to the fact that it meets people’s tastes in very different cultures and living spaces around the world. how do you manage to do this? actually, it’s quite simple: we try to keep an eye on how people live. you always have to be close to the people … to what extent do you think that the influence of the swedish way of living with its “småland” cottage-atmosphere and the tasty meatballs is responsible for ikea’s great success? i think that the swedish ikea concept appeals to so many people because it has a lot to do with common sense and cares about how people live. do you think that sweden in general is a good breeding ground for conveying joie de vivre and creating personal freedom? i would say so, absolutely. attractive pricing has always been an important aspect of the ikea concept. what do you think of the recent turbulent development towards low–fare airlines, discount stores and free mobile phones? the most important thing is to offer a cheap product that at the same time still has an appealing design and good functionality so that as many people as possible can afford to buy it. another important aspect of the ikea concept has always been the individual assembling of furniture. do you as a designer already think about easy assembling when you create a new product? our designers always work together with technicians, suppliers and other people to ensure a good product. if you take the famous billy shelf as an example, you realize that some pieces of furniture never cease to be modern, they seem to be timeless. what do you as a designer think of trends and fashion movements? lifestyle trends are changing all the time, but people’s basic needs always remain the same. after all, we will always sit, cook, eat and sleep ... will the billy shelf still look the same in 50 years? who knows? probably we will still need something to store our things in ... helmut wolf