Ikea Discontinues the Expedit Shelving Unit

The interior design world is up in arms about a bookcase ever since Ikea announced they will be discontinuing their popular cubicle shelving unit, otherwise known as the Expedit series. The news shocked designers and fans alike because it is hands down the most popular Ikea item, which left many of us asking "why? "

After I got over my initial reactions - which mostly involved outrage over foiled plans for a fictitious walk in closet - I am happy to say that though I love the Expedit series, I think it is great what Ikea is doing. 

According to Gizmodo, Ikea is not getting rid of the concept all together. The replacement for the Expedit series will be called the Kallax and the square storage sections will be the same size but the outer casing of the unit will be thinner.

So then why such a small change? As environmental sustainability activists, Ikea not only plans to decrease their material costs but decrease material waste and over consumption by thinning out the unneeded parts of their products. 

An eco-friendly change up for the design community = I'm now into it. Bring it on Kallax!

For those of you that are still shedding tears, let's hope you built your Expedit correctly the first time around!

- Suzanne

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