Ikea’s Figured Out a Way to Monetize Your Favorite Ikea Hacks

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Ikea is embracing the concept of Ikea hacking, or repurposing an existing Ikea piece into something totally new. Gizmodo reports that the company is working on developing official IKEA hack kits that would allow customers to build new variations of Ikea furniture. It's an idea that's existed for awhile, especially via Ikea Hackers, the fan site that Ikea tried to shut down last year. Ikea-sponsored hack kits would allow the brand to monetize that concept. The plan is to compile all the Ikea Hacks into one website so customers can see what is possible for each hackable product.

The company is also considering a furniture resale market called IKEA Swap that would allow shoppers to buy even cheaper products or trade in select pieces for points to buy new furniture as part of an Ikea "buy back guarantee." Gizmodo didn't include a timeline for when these initiatives would appear in Ikea stores and online, and noted that they might not happen at all.