Ask anyone to come up with a brand for furniture and they'll most likely get the same image in their heads - blue background with big, bold yellow letters spelling IKEA. Established in 1943, the swedish company has become the one-stop-shop to build our dream homes. From the living room, to the bedroom, to the kitchen, you'll be spoilt with affordable choices and inspiration to make your home truly unique. Here are 10 fun facts about our favorite furniture store that you probably didn't know!

1. IKEA is not a Swedish Word

If you thought it was, I don't blame you at all. IKEA is just a combination of initials of the founder's name Ingvar Kamprad (IK), the family farm where he was born - Elmtaryd (E), and the village he grew up in - Agunnaryd (A).

2. IKEA did not start with furniture.

Ingvar Kamprad started IKEA with some financial help from his father. It begun as a mail-order sales business selling everything from photo frames to ballpoint pens. Only after 5 years, in 1948, did he add furniture to his portfolio.

3. What do the names even mean?

Many times, the incomprehensible names of IKEA products are just used as jokes, but there are actually meanings behind them. Since Ingvar Kamprad was dyslexic, he found a way to keep track of his products instead of having to remember item codes - using Nordic words and names. Below is how it works:

4. It used to be impossible to fit a bed frame in your car.

For as long as we can remember, IKEA is famed for Flat Pack furniture. That means you can fit multiple pieces of furniture in a normal car and only assemble it at home. This wasn't the case before 1956, until IKEA designer Gillis Lundgren realized he couldn't fit an assembled table into his car without cutting the legs off. This inspired him to push for the first flat packed table.

5. There are more IKEA catalogues printed each year than The Holy Bible.

An estimated 100 million bibles are printed every year, but in 2017 alone, 203 million copies of the IKEA catalogue was printed worldwide. They comein 27 languages for different regions. However, with advancements in Internet technology, after 70 years, it's now time to say goodbye to the iconic print. The picture below shows a catalog from 1951.

6. Catalogue pictures were real...then they were not.

Early versions of the product catalogue included photos and drawings of the product itself. However, to inspire consumers and help them visualize the product in natural space, IKEA spends days designing and moving multiple pieces of furniture and accessories into a room for a "live" photoshoot. The effort was eventually too time and energy consuming that IKEA decided to opt for the computer graphics (CG) method to present different scenes starting from 2006.

7. IKEA was LGBTQ friendly since the 90s.

In 1994, IKEA posted the first ever commercial with a gay couple in the spotlight. At that time, homosexuality is still widely frowned upon and the commercial instantly made headlines. IKEA even received bomb threats and were forced to take down the commercial.

8. The Bulla Bulla method.

IKEA uses a technique whereby small pieces of items are jumbled into big bins. This is known as the "Bulla Bulla" method and gives the illusion that the items are cheap because of the huge volume. As you walk through the areas designed with the method, you'll be tempted to get things you "never thought you needed".

9. The whole thing's a maze.

Everyone gets a little lost the first time they enter an IKEA store and it's designed to be that way. It's a marketing strategy that keeps you in their stores for a longer time. Plus, you'll feel pressured to make decisions right away under the fear of not being able to go back and get something you liked.

10. Where are the words?

If you've ever assembled IKEA furniture, you'll have notice the lack of written instructions in their instruction manual. The instructions usually come in the form of pictures showing you which ends go into which places and are usually enough for the average consumer to piece everything together. The main reason for this is to reduce the need to translate everything into multiple languages (which will lead to a very very thick manual!)

So, how many of these facts did you know? The next time you go shopping at IKEA with your friends and family, don't forget to show off these cool pieces of knowledge!