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Balancing Global Consistency and Cultural Adaptation: A Comparative Study of IKEA’s Brand Communication in China and Sweden: Cultural Dimensions-Based Content and Interview Study
Jönköping University, Jönköping International Business School. No.
Jönköping University, Jönköping International Business School.
2025 (English)Independent thesis Basic level (degree of Bachelor), 10 credits / 15 HE creditsStudent thesis
Abstract [en]

Balancing global homogeneity and local cultural responsiveness is a core challenge for multinational brands. This thesis investigates how IKEA sustains balance between such pressures in its communications in Sweden and China—two cultures with varying cultural values. Based on Hofstede's cultural dimensions theory as the conceptual basis, the study applies qualitative content analysis of advertising and social media content, and conducts semi-structured interviews with IKEA employees. The findings reveal that Swedish brand communication of IKEA converges on individualism, autonomy, and minimalism, while Chinese brand communication converges on emotional bonding, collectivism, and omni-directional service. The research offers an analytical model to operationalize culture dimensions for brand communication and provides practical guidance for international brands engaging in cross-cultural markets.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2025.
Keywords [en]
Global brand consistency, Cultural adaptation, Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, Cross-cultural communication, IKEA, Localization.
National Category
Social Sciences Economics and Business Business Administration
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-69474OAI: oai:DiVA.org:hj-69474DiVA, id: diva2:1987697
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Available from: 2025-08-19 Created: 2025-08-07 Last updated: 2025-10-13Bibliographically approved

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CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

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Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • modern-language-association-8th-edition
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf