Ingka Group reimagines ‘Home Sweet Home’ sign for International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia

To mark this year’s International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHOTB) on 17 May, Ingka Group is once again paving the way for its customers and co-workers to show their support for the LGBT+ community by reimagining the ‘Home Sweet Home’ sign as a symbol of acceptance and inclusion and reintroducing the rainbow (STORSTOMMA) bag.

Redesigned as ‘Home Pride Home’, the sign has been updated to incorporate the colours of the Progress Flag and demonstrates the IKEA belief that everyone should feel at home and free to be themselves regardless of who or where they are.

Over the coming weeks and leading to Pride Month around the world, Ingka will be encouraging customers to share the redesigned sign via social media. It is available as a GIF on Instagram stories for people to share from 17 May and will be accompanied by a series of actionable tips on how people can be stronger allies to the LGBT+ community. These tips were created in collaboration with the UK charity, Stonewall.

"Sadly, too few LGBT+ people feel they can be open and honest about who they are, even to their own family. We will continue to use our influence and resources to help build a world where people of all sexual orientations and gender identities feel free to be themselves, wherever they are,” says Helen Duphorn, Ingka Group Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Manager. 

Duphorn says by carrying a rainbow bag, sharing the Home Pride Home sign, and showing acceptance, customers can become champions for inclusion through small, everyday actions. ”Let’s use this moment to raise our voice for progress and collectively open our hearts and our homes to make people of all identities feel included, respected and welcome,” she says.

A percentage of profits from the sale of every rainbow (STORSTOMMA) bag goes to LGBT+ organisations around the world, supporting Pride events and other initiatives. Since 2020, 5.6 million rainbow bags have been sold globally, with a portion of proceeds going directly to local LGBT+ organisations fighting for equality.  

Examples of how Ingka Group is working to make the world a more welcoming place for members of the LGBT+ community:

• In March 2022, IKEA Romania provided in-kind donations to ACCEPT, an NGO that advocates for LGBT+ rights people in Romania, to support LGBT+ refugees fleeing from Ukraine to Romania. IKEA Romania has donated 254 products to furnish places to accommodate up to 20 people, so that the most vulnerable can feel safe at home.
• In March 2022, IKEA US joined a group of 60 US companies in signing a public letter against the anti-trans Texas policy that directs “child abuse” investigations into parents of transgender children receiving gender-affirming medical care.
• IKEA in the Netherlands now offers co-workers who are undergoing a gender transition the possibility to take up to 24 weeks of paid leave to use in a period of 10 years, for medical and non-medical treatment.
• IKEA France officially signed the commitment charter of L’Autre Cercle, a French organisation working to enhance LGBT+ inclusion in the workplace. They also established “IKEA Pride France”, a resource group for French co-workers.
• IKEA Portugal is working with local NGO, LIV(r)E Project, co-financed by IKEA IDAHOTB 2021 to support the LGBT+ community in Porto by creating safe spaces to socialise and access information; train companies to try to dismantle stereotypes and encourage inclusion of LGBT+ people in the labor market; provide access to job training for LGBT+ persons and provide legal support for victims of labor discrimination.
• In September 2021, IKEA Switzerland campaigned for same sex marriage and donated 50,000 Swiss Francs from rainbow (STORSTOMMA) bag sales to the committee, Marriage for All, to support their "YES” campaign, which was successful in a public referendum.
• IKEA Germany supports Queer Refugees, a project of the Lesbian and Gay Association (LSVD) for better integration and networking of queer refugees. With so-called self-empowerment training, they should find more self-confidence and resilience and be strengthened.

For further information, journalists and media professionals can contact us at press.office@ingka.com or by calling +46 70 993 6376.

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