foundation-linked global furniture retailer

IKEA

Industry Retail

A foundation-linked global furniture and home-goods retailer selling low-price furnishings, with durable value and opaque non-democratic control. IKEA lands in the middle because the model leaves more value with stakeholders and its market conduct is less extractive, but material opacity prevents a stronger rating.

Why this matters: IKEA is useful for everyday home goods, but low prices and design do not substitute for accountable control.

Letter grade C Performative Medium confidence (AI) Rubric gcd-rubric-v1 Last reviewed May 6, 2026

Final Score 35* C - Performative

CPERFORMATIVE35 pts

* Tentative scaffolding score. Not human-checked or final.

Base Material35

Bonus+2

Cap41Ownership <= 4 and Governance <= 4

After Cap37

Penalties-2

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Evaluation Overview

C - Performative

The score turns mainly on Extraction, with the largest penalty coming from Accountability Opacity.

Strengths

Extraction6/10
Market Conduct5/5
Ownership4/10

Penalties

Accountability Opacity-2

Evidence state

ConfidenceMedium confidence (AI)
ThoroughnessDeveloped (AI)
Linked claims7
Direct axis claims6
Coverage4/11

Scoring Axes

Axis	Score	Why this score
Ownership ? Control rights: shareholder-dominated at 0, worker cooperative control at 10.	4 / 10	IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. That places IKEA in the middle of Ownership: there is some mission, member, producer, or public-interest constraint, but decisive control is not fully democratic. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 110 scored entries below, 7 tied, 109 above on Ownership. Linked evidence IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. [1] Inter IKEA and Ingka publish official ownership-structure pages showing foundation-linked and franchising structures, supporting the non-shareholder but non-democratic ownership assessment. [2]
Governance ? Binding decision authority: centralized control at 0, democratic stakeholder control at 10.	2 / 10	IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. That keeps IKEA low on Governance: ordinary users, workers, customers, or affected communities cannot change the rules that govern them. The value is above zero only where the linked record still shows some real function, constraint, or public value on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 71 scored entries below, 22 tied, 133 above on Governance. Linked evidence context IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. [1] context IKEA describes its democratic design approach as combining form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price. [3] context IKEA sells furniture, household goods, and home basics at global retail scale. [4]
Extraction ? Surplus allocation, wage share, CEO pay ratio, margins, and structured extraction judgment.	6 / 10	IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. That places IKEA in the middle of Extraction: the institution creates real value but still leaves room for rent extraction, unequal bargaining, or surplus capture. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 115 scored entries below, 24 tied, 87 above on Extraction. Linked evidence context IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. [1] context IKEA describes its democratic design approach as combining form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price. [3] context IKEA sells furniture, household goods, and home basics at global retail scale. [4]
Labor Sovereignty ? Worker power: coercive conditions at 0, co-determination or ownership at 7. Employee dissatisfaction matters only when source-backed evidence shows concrete limits on worker agency, such as coercive scheduling, retaliation, wage theft, harassment, unsafe conditions, suppression of worker voice, or extreme turnover.	3 / 7	IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. That places IKEA in the middle of Labor Sovereignty: workers or participants have some protection or agency, but not enough binding power to control the relationship. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 45 scored entries below, 66 tied, 115 above on Labor Sovereignty. Linked evidence context IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. [1] context IKEA describes its democratic design approach as combining form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price. [3] context IKEA sells furniture, household goods, and home basics at global retail scale. [4]
Solidarity with the Unemployed ? Treatment of exits and nonworkers, including severance, redeployment, and non-competes.	3 / 7	IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. That places IKEA in the middle of Solidarity with the Unemployed: some access, severance, retraining, openness, or mutual-aid value is present, but it is not central or durable. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 81 scored entries below, 45 tied, 100 above on Solidarity with the Unemployed. Linked evidence context IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. [1] context IKEA describes its democratic design approach as combining form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price. [3] context IKEA sells furniture, household goods, and home basics at global retail scale. [4]
Loss-Bearing Fidelity ? Willingness to absorb costs to preserve values, workers, users, and public obligations.	4 / 7	IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. That places IKEA in the middle of Loss-Bearing Fidelity: there is some willingness to preserve obligations, but the record still leaves meaningful risk-shifting concerns. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 88 scored entries below, 30 tied, 108 above on Loss-Bearing Fidelity. Linked evidence context IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. [1] context IKEA describes its democratic design approach as combining form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price. [3] context IKEA sells furniture, household goods, and home basics at global retail scale. [4]
Market Conduct ? Pricing fairness, switching costs, lock-in, and rent extraction.	5 / 5	IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. That places IKEA high on Market Conduct: pricing, access, switching, and bargaining practices show restraint compared with ordinary rent-seeking competitors. A still-higher or maximum value requires stronger proof that this structure is durable, broad, and not merely discretionary. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 180 scored entries below, 46 tied, 0 above on Market Conduct. Linked evidence context IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. [1] context IKEA describes its democratic design approach as combining form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price. [3] context IKEA sells furniture, household goods, and home basics at global retail scale. [4]
Product Integrity ? Preservation of quality rather than degradation for monetization.	4 / 5	IKEA sells furniture, household goods, and home basics at global retail scale. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 61 scored entries below, 72 tied, 93 above on Product Integrity. Linked evidence IKEA sells furniture, household goods, and home basics at global retail scale. [4]
Scale Integrity ? Whether growth improves or degrades fairness and accountability.	4 / 5	IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. That places IKEA high on Scale Integrity: growth appears compatible with accountability, quality, and stakeholder benefit. A still-higher or maximum value requires stronger proof that this structure is durable, broad, and not merely discretionary. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 109 scored entries below, 81 tied, 36 above on Scale Integrity. Linked evidence context IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control. [1] context IKEA describes its democratic design approach as combining form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price. [3] context IKEA sells furniture, household goods, and home basics at global retail scale. [4]

Penalties

Penalty	Applied	Why this penalty
Accountability Opacity ? Material opacity, reputation laundering, or hidden accountability structures that prevent public accountability. Range: -2 to 0.	-2	IKEA's foundation-linked franchise and group structure is more complex and less directly accountable to ordinary workers or shoppers than democratic cooperative ownership. IKEA's foundation-linked franchise and group structure is more complex and less directly accountable to ordinary workers or shoppers than democratic cooperative ownership. That warrants a severe Accountability Opacity penalty because material facts, risks, conflicts, ownership, or accountability information are obscured from the public. The value is near the floor because the conduct appears central, large-scale, repeated, or institutionally powerful rather than incidental. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 0 scored entries below, 52 tied, 174 above on Accountability Opacity. Linked evidence IKEA's foundation-linked franchise and group structure is more complex and less directly accountable to ordinary workers or shoppers than democratic cooperative ownership. [6]

Bonus Credits

Bonus	Credit	Why this credit
Good Deal ? Credit for unusually fair value: durable quality, fair pricing, low lock-in, and clear customer surplus.	2 / 3	IKEA describes its democratic design approach as combining form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 185 scored entries below, 14 tied, 27 above on Good Deal. Linked evidence IKEA describes its democratic design approach as combining form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price. [3] IKEA describes democratic design as balancing form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price, strengthening the good-deal claim while not changing governance score. [5]

Confidence Basis

Confidence is computed from the evidence trail and review state, not typed into the profile by hand.

Medium 70/100

7 verified linked claims 6 direct axis claims 0 disputed claims 4/11 components covered

This confidence label measures the source-backed evidence trail. AI-scaffolded scores remain tentative until human review.

Claim confidence 17/20

7 verified linked claims

Source quality 11/18

Best source per verified claim, weighted by institutional reliability

Direct axis-specific claims 9/18

6 direct claims across 11 active components

Dispute load 12/12

0 disputed claims on this entity

Recency 10/10

Newest accepted timestamp: May 13, 2026

Reviewer status 7/12

Human-reviewed components score higher than AI scaffolding

Component coverage 4/10

4/11 evidence-bearing components have direct support

Evidence State

Profile stateAI draft / human-pending

VerificationUnverified

ConfidenceMedium confidence (AI)

ThoroughnessDeveloped (AI)

Correction routeUse “Challenge this rating” for factual errors, missing counterevidence, source problems, or calculation mistakes.

Company responseCompany representatives can submit source-backed corrections; payment never changes scores or reviewer authority.

Claims and Sources

Claims are the evidence record. Each claim needs a source link, axis category, status, confidence level, and timestamp before it can support a score.

* Tentative scaffolding score. Not human-checked or final.

1IKEA-related businesses are organized through foundation-linked and franchising structures rather than public shareholder ownership, but the reviewed materials do not show democratic worker or customer control.

Ownership Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

Inter IKEA ownership structureOfficial self-description · 68%
Ingka Group ownership structureOfficial self-description · 68%

2Inter IKEA and Ingka publish official ownership-structure pages showing foundation-linked and franchising structures, supporting the non-shareholder but non-democratic ownership assessment.

Ownership Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

Inter IKEA ownership structureOfficial self-description · 68%
Ingka Group ownership structureOfficial self-description · 68%

3IKEA describes its democratic design approach as combining form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price.

Good Deal Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

IKEA democratic designGeneral web source · 58%

4IKEA sells furniture, household goods, and home basics at global retail scale.

Product Integrity Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

IKEA homepageGeneral web source · 58%

5IKEA describes democratic design as balancing form, function, quality, sustainability, and low price, strengthening the good-deal claim while not changing governance score.

Good Deal Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

IKEA democratic designGeneral web source · 58%

6IKEA's foundation-linked franchise and group structure is more complex and less directly accountable to ordinary workers or shoppers than democratic cooperative ownership.

Accountability Opacity Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

Inter IKEA ownership structureOfficial self-description · 68%
Ingka Group ownership structureOfficial self-description · 68%

7IKEA's public materials state a mission, values, ownership model, advocacy role, or institutional standpoint plainly enough that this record does not identify penalty-level neutrality theater.

Ideological Disavowal Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 9, 2026

AI scaffold

IKEA official siteGeneral web source · 58%
Inter IKEA ownership structureOfficial self-description · 68%
Ingka Group ownership structureOfficial self-description · 68%

Alternatives

Competitors

BQUALIFIED47 John Lewis Partnership employee-owned retailer · United Kingdom BQUALIFIED45 Second Use Building Materials employee-owned building-material salvage business · Washington, Pacific Northwest BQUALIFIED44 Ace Hardware retailer-owned hardware cooperative · United States BQUALIFIED43 Do it Best member-owned hardware cooperative · United States BQUALIFIED42 Dr. Bronner's private benefit corporation · United States CPERFORMATIVE41 Patagonia private company · United States CPERFORMATIVE41 Who Gives A Crap private household-paper company · Australia CPERFORMATIVE39 Richer Sounds employee-owned retailer · United Kingdom

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How This Page Is Maintained

Evidence comes in through contributors, is checked by verifiers, and is synthesized by reviewers. Founder authority remains narrow and visible; scores recalculate when verified claims or the rubric change.

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Audit Log

Recent public changes for this company or group. The full audit log is part of the Transparency record.

May 6, 2026 at 12:00 AM UTC ai-scaffolding

Added source-backed tentative evaluation during the everyday-products and useful-shopping expansion pass.

May 6, 2026 at 12:00 AM UTC ai-scaffolding

Improved evidence specificity and recalibrated confidence after adding direct source-backed claims. Score values were not changed in this pass.

View Full Audit Log