There’s just something about a ‘limited edition’ tagline that really gets your senses tingling.
I mean, just think about it with the following example in mind. There’s a store down the road which deals in commercialised lights. Good business. Friendly owner. Recently, there was a new addition to its products: a spanking new atas-looking desk lamp. Affordable and environment-friendly to boot, it was seen as a game-changer.
Except nobody gave a shit.
Deterred, the jovial owner half-heartedly slapped a limited-edition tag on the lamps and made a mental note to cease all shipment of the products after this one. He advertises the news in the papers and hopes for the best.
Voila, everyone came swarming in.
And so, long story short? A ‘limited edition’ tag really heightens the attractiveness of a product. Why? Well, it’s probably down to some scientific notion that exclusivity triggers the most abysmal urges in people.
As a Wise Old Man would point out, it’s something similar to animal shows. Usually, nobody would give a shit about a routine rhino show. Eliminate 99% of all rhinos and everyone will come flocking in for one last look at the critter.
Just human psychology, really. And a predictable one at that.
People Are Queuing Up for IKEA’s Limited Edition Furniture
The introduction might’ve seemed unnecessarily theoretical, but the gist is related to what we’re about to see.
Limited Edition Furniture, by the great IKEA itself.
So lest you’re unaware, the Swedish furniture manufacturer is rolling out a limited collection today (31 October 2019).
Held in collaboration with world-renowned creative Virgil Abloh, the limited edition collection, titled MARKERAD, features a range of everyday objects from clocks to chairs, fine-tuned with “the kind of striking style that can help any home stand out”.
“It’s about elevating the anonymous, everyday icons that we use without noticing. When we put a doorstop on one of the legs of an ordinary chair we create something unexpected – an interruption,” Virgil Abloh stated.
Well, being an average layman with zero appreciation for furniture that’s unnecessarily expensive… I’ve no idea what he’s talking about. But then again, from the looks of it…
It seems that people do get it, and they want a piece of it.
Snaking Long Queues
Early today (31 October 2019), Hardwarezone forum users woke up to a rather interesting thread:
Snaking long queues, right outside an IKEA outlet in Singapore.
Lest you’re wondering, these folks over here almost certainly queuing up for a piece of MARKERAD, because last I checked IKEA’s meatballs weren’t exactly this queue-worthy.
Well, I could be wrong, but I doubt it. Their meatballs aren’t even that nice anymore, to be honest.
Needless to say, forum users weren’t exactly amused by the sight, with some dishing out some classic ‘parental talk’.
Though of course, some couldn’t help but reveal their innate Singaporean colours:
Also, one speculated about the exact location:
Details of the site, however, weren’t confirmed.
But bruh, there are only two IKEA in Singapore. Getting it wrong isn’t easy.
MARKERAD Limited Collection
Lest you’re wondering what the hype’s all about, here’s a not-so-secret sneak preview of what MARKERAD has to offer:
And here’s what a not-so-convinced forum user on Hardwarezone feels about it:
But hey, as I preached in the introductory paragraph, the ‘limited edition’ moniker does constitute powers beyond our imagination. And with Virgil Abloh on board…
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Well, the snaking long queues aren’t that hard to validate, really.
