Viral series of stunts designed to get IKEA’s attention (spoiler: it did).
The Opportunity
How do big retailers decide where to build their next store?
Typically, they work with site selectors who do the research to identify and choose ideal locations. The site selection process is usually one-sided; cities and states try to make themselves as appealing to businesses as possible, but they don’t really get to decide which companies are interested in them.
…That is, unless they work with Gitwit to make a lot of noise about the city.
In April 2023, the popular global furniture retailer IKEA announced it planned to invest $2.2 billion in new U.S. locations. As Tulsans are painfully aware, the nearest IKEA locations are roughly four hours away in Frisco, Texas, and Merriam, Kansas.
Gitwit worked with a coalition of Tulsans to get on IKEA’s radar through a creative — and wholesome — campaign aptly named Tulsa Loves IKEA.
Tulsmå Restaurant
Partnering with award-winning chefs collective Et Al., we launched the first-ever fine dining restaurant inspired by IKEA. Chefs at Et Al. spent weeks developing a custom prix fixe menu of six courses and a wine pairing with influences from Nordic cuisine, Tulsa’s identity, and the iconic IKEA restaurant. Held at Vista at the Gathering Place over four nights, June 14-17, Tulsmå reservations sold out within hours.
Gitwit created the name Tulsmå (a combination of Tulsa and Småland, hometown of IKEA’s founder), created the branding, designed and directed the interior of the restaurant, and created all awareness marketing for the restaurant.
Tulsa-to-IKEA Shopping Trip
In an effort to show IKEA HQ that Tulsans not only love IKEA but are willing to spend money at a location, we took a group of 60+ Tulsans on a Tulsa Loves IKEA-branded charter bus and headed down to the Frisco location to do some shopping. It was a long 13-hour day, but rewarding — shoppers came back with full bellies, lots of IKEA purchases, and even some gifted goodies from the IKEA Frisco staff.
IKEArt Installation
Creativity and resourcefulness are two things Tulsa and IKEA have in common, and we wanted to put those similarities on display in a big way. Local artists Aaron Jones and Bret Pfeifer were tasked with creating a large-scale art installation made completely out of IKEA products. They created a playful shade pavilion out of 30 IKEA Mammut children’s tables for visitors of the Gathering Place park.
Project Work
The Website
We designed a website in the style of IKEA assembly instructions, detailing all the steps of our plan to get IKEA’s attention. The Tulsa Loves IKEA website also collected and published letters from 150+ Tulsans expressing their love for IKEA and pleading for a store. The website changed constantly as we completed each step, gradually morphing from an active campaign to documenting the success of each initiative.
The Branding
Branding took cues from IKEA’s iconic visual identity but unique enough so Tulsans could get behind it and call it their own. The brand also had to be incredibly versatile — it was used everywhere from a charter bus wrap to a shopping tote.
Alternate Layouts
Extra Badges
The Social Content
Social Media Video Content kept the campaign alive and exciting day-to-day. We conducted man-on-the-street interviews, gave away free Tulsa Loves IKEA merch, and asked trivia questions on the @tulsalovesikea account. We met and engaged with so many Tulsan IKEA lovers.
The Response
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IKEA in Tulsa? Why some community leaders want the furniture store in town
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