From their versatile FADO orb lamp to their ubiquitous LACK coffee table, IKEA has put out dozens of wildly popular home decor items that can find a place in any apartment or home. And it looks like they’ve got another hit on their hands: IKEA’s newest viral product is a Swedish man you can sit on top of.
Wow! Prepare to see these in all of your friends’ apartments.
The SVEN, the newest item in IKEA’s seating collection, is a quiet, mild-mannered Swedish man in his 30s that can be styled and positioned in various ways as a seating option for your living room, bedroom, or even your lawn. SVEN can be placed upright, laid face-down on the floor, or moved in countless other ways so that one or more people may sit on his lap, belly, or back. And unlike a typical chair, SVEN makes an interesting “oof” sound any time you sit down on him. There are many accessories sold along with the Sven—he can wear one of several muumuu style outfits to match your decor, or a skintight nude suit. IKEA has also rolled out holiday friendly options for the SVEN, like a Santa suit and Easter bunny costume, as well as a full-body wetsuit that can be used to waterproof the SVEN for use as patio furniture.
Many TikTokers and Instagram design influencers have already made use of the SVEN in their homes. One interior designer posted footage from a recent dinner party at which she served food on her coffee table and allowed her guests to sit on SVEN like a bench, even capturing some of them feeding him pieces of sashimi, which he accepted happily but not greedily. According to IKEA’s website, the Sven does require feeding. Thankfully, they sell nutritional pellets, and some influencers have even created an IKEA “hack” by storing said pellets in a cute ceramic IKEA bowl rather than the more utilitarian one provided with the SVEN product. Though he typically doesn’t speak unless spoken to, you can also have short conversations with the SVEN; many influencers have filmed themselves asking SVEN whether he misses his original home, to which he typically says “At times.”
This is too cool. We need to get our hands on this awesome product immediately! Well done, IKEA!
