Ikea Just Bought… TaskRabbit?

Illustration for article titled Ikea Just Bought… TaskRabbit?

It sort of makes sense. Swedish flatpack furniture giant Ikea just acquired American labor on demand startup TaskRabbit. As some have pointed out, Ikea just bought a company that already employs people to build its own furniture. Makes sense!


As first reported by Recode’s Kara Swisher and Theodore Schleifer, the acquisition will mean that Ikea will start offering TaskRabbit services in the United States and the United Kingdom. Other countries will follow, the company said. There’s no word about the price of the acquisition. Either way, this move will equip Ikea with an army of freelance laborers who could, well, continue to help people build their Ikea furniture and also do other stuff, too.

Recode also points out that the acquisition will help Ikea better compete with companies like Amazon and Best Buy, both of whom recently announced services that would send workers to customers’ homes to help with installations. Amazon is offering free smart home consultations on top of its handy man services. Best Buy, well, Best Buy is doing everything it can to stay afloat in an Amazon-dominated world.


[Recode] [Ikea]

Senior editor at Gizmodo.

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Andrew Daisuke

Wait, did I read that tight? People pay other people to assemble the furniture that they bought from IKEA?

Holy shit, sounds like another Juicero.