As good weather approaches, life habits change; especially in countries accustomed to few hours of daylight and lack of sun. To invite Swedish consumers to enjoy the summer period to the fullest, Ikea has installed a monument in the sunniest point in the entire country, thus also turning it into a tourist destination.
Together with the creative agency NoA Åkestam Holst, the company has analyzed historical data and the landscape to establish the square meter of Swedish land that receives the most sun. Specifically, and as explained on a website dedicated to the initiative, it has collaborated with the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI) and studied solar radiation records collected between 2005 and 2025. It has also used a satellite climate database that records insolation and solar energy throughout Sweden.
According to these calculations, the sunniest place in Sweden is located just southwest of Burgsvik, a small town in the south of the island of Gotland with just over 300 inhabitants. Once the location was established, he identified the specific square meter with the help of architect and topographic consultant Erik Gardell, who examined factors such as terrain, altitude, sun exposure and shading patterns. Ikea points out that this point has recorded an average of 2,137 hours of sunshine per year during the 20 years of data analyzed.
The brand has celebrated the discovery by creating a monument in the exact location. It is a sculpture composed of two stone chairs, inspired by the shape of his Skarpö chair, originally designed by Magnus Elebäck for IKEA. As the brand explains, each piece weighs approximately 500 kilos and is carved from a single block of stone. Its production has been carried out in collaboration with the Marmor & Granit company in Kristianstad.
With this, the company has created a type of tourist facility that aims to be a destination for visitors who wish to experience first-hand the sunniest place in the country during the summer months. However, the brand warns that the facility is located on private property with the permission of the owner and that the area is used as pasture for part of the year, so it asks visitors to be respectful of the nature and animals of the place, and take all trash with them when they leave.
However, the brand remembers that nor you have to travel to Gotland to create sunny spaces, since it is possible to achieve this with the appropriate outdoor furniture and intelligent solutions that are part of its catalog and that, it assures, can help turn balconies, patios and gardens into oases of sunshine. The initiative’s website includes a selection of products to make this possible.
“I love when communication can be simple, smart and a little playful. Because, of course, this is about the sun. But also about something bigger: how light, heat and seasons change the way we live at home“, commented Linda Vikström, Director of Communication at Ikea Sweden, via LinkedIn. “When summer comes, life goes away. To balconies, gardens, patios – and perhaps to the sunniest square meters in Sweden”.
It has also announced a promotion that will take place starting June 8.
