Ikea receives Cannes "Best Advertiser of the year" award

 Swedish furniture giants Ikea will receive the Cannes Lion 2011 for Best Advertisers. A special one for the group, as this will be their 50th Lion (in 58 years of Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity). Last year, Ikea won the Titanium Lion for its use of Facebook.

Philip Thomas, Cannes Lions CEO, praises Ikea: “Ikea’s approach to its marketing and communications, with its decentralised structure and strong relationships with many different kinds of agencies, has been hugely successful over many years. The company’s superb track record at Cannes reveals a clarity of vision and an enviable willingness to allow its agencies to truly flex their creative muscles. We congratulate both Ikea and its many agencies across many countries on this well-deserved honour.”

Belgian Noel Wijsmans, vice-president of IKEA Group and Global Retail Manager, will accept the award in Cannes on 25 June. He states that it is “a great recognition of Ikea advertising that speaks to all of us who want to have a functional and beautiful home. We want to inspire people to fulfil needs and dreams in their everyday life at home. And we want to do that with a smile.”