Prior to 2017, the home furnishing market was growing strongly, reaching a size of 141 billion forints, with IKEA Hungary holding about a 38 percent market share. For IKEA, sustainably sourced raw materials (cotton, wood) and the use of renewable energy in store operations were of paramount importance, with the planned new Soroksár store being a regional flagship in this regard. These characteristics were less known among customers. One of the biggest challenges in communication was to position IKEA as a sustainable company that supports local communities,while maintaining its role as a home furnishing expert, all while addressing multiple target groups.

As part of the "Hello Soroksár!" campaign, we aimed to reintroduce a "familiarbrand" to more people connecting unknown facts and messages to the store'sconstruction. These included IKEA as a great workplace IKEA as a backer of local communities, and IKEA as an eco-friendly company. When we planned the campaign, we picked three target groups,

which had both engaged and new players. To reach local communities, we put face-to-face contact first, which shaped our channels.

We connected with customers in the early stages through press and social media outreach backed by focused media purchases before opening. Because of money limits, we used these purchases to support business aims; we boosted the campaign's other messages with a blend of inventive PR tactics.

We reached out to IKEA staff via internal communication tools (newsletters, bulletin boards,company paper, events) and set up tours for them.

September 2016 - March 2017: We showed IKEA as an employer and good neighbor to customers and staff, while starting talks with local communities. We kept journalist and blogger contacts in the loop with video messages, press releases, and interviews. Our Facebook posts got more creative with gifs, drone shots, and timelapse videos. In late 2016, we set up two store tours for IKEA workers then the press. At a February 2017 event to share financial results, we put the spotlight on sustainability and store news using a visual aid.

April - June 2017: In the closing phase of the campaign, the previous press and social media activities were complemented by media buying and an advertising campaign. We invited Soroksár kinder garteners to try out the playground, and following the WMN journalists, our entire journalist circle participated in a store tour. On June 14, the store opened. We broadcast the opening ceremony on IKEA's Facebook page, the Swedish ambassador participated in the celebration, which was enlivened by a flashmob dance by employees.

Compared to the expected 120,000 visitors, 11 percent more, 130,094 people visited the new IKEA between June 14 and 28, with the decrease in visitors to the two stores during this period being minimal (less than 15%).

The actual number of visitors to the microsite exceeded the planned number by 70 percent, with a total of 171,000 visiting the page. The significance of this result is shown by the fact that it typically takes 9-10 days for this many people to visit IKEA's main page.

IKEA's own customer research reveals that there was a positive change in attitude. Awareness of investor, sustainability, and good employer aspects showed a 5-7 percent increase compared to the previous year, thus meeting reputational goals.

The 792 related articles accounted for 16.8 percent of all press coverage. Facebook communication was important in reaching customers; between February 2016 andJune 2017, the 50 posts and video content supporting the Soroksár store communication on the page reached a total of 5.8 million, generating 54,563 reactions, 3,725 shares, and 2,461 comments.