Ikea to stop selling traditional lightbulbs and move to LED ones

Swedish home furnishings chain said it had been planning the phasing out of older-style lightbulbs for the past two years
PA
Simon Neville10 August 2015

Ikea is set to become the first global retailer to completely stop stocking traditional lightbulbs and only sell LED ones.

Ahead of an EU ban on halogen bulbs due in 2018, the Swedish home furnishings chain said it had been planning the phasing out of older-style lightbulbs for the past two years and was finally ready to push the button.

However, some customers could be left disappointed as many homes and light fittings – in particular dimmable lights – cannot work properly with LED light bulbs.

LED bulbs, which use up to 85% less energy than a typical bulb, can also cost as much as five times more.

But Ikea insist the move will save customers hundreds of pounds a year, pointing out that the average British household using around 10 bulbs per house could save £300 off their electricity bill.

Bosses also claimed customers would save £247 per bulb because they last longer than typical bulbs.

Steve Howard, chief sustainability officer at Ikea, said: “Cutting down on energy consumption shouldn’t mean cutting down on style, which is why we’ve embraced LED technology and worked hard to make products that are beautiful, sustainable and affordable, so our customers can love LED as much as we do.”

The change in lightbulbs, from traditional incandescent bulbs which were banned three years ago, has been pushed by the EU, although member states voted in April to push back a halogen bulb until 2018 from 2016 to allow companies more time to develop LED bulbs.

When 100W bulbs were first banned in 2012 it led to some homeowners hoarding lightbulbs, claiming that none of the alternative energy saving bulbs were as bright.

Today’s decision is the second major announcement from Ikea in as many months, after it won huge plaudits last month after it became the first major retailer to adopt the Living Wage.

Staff will now earn at least £7.85 an hour outside London and £9.15 an hour in the capital.

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