Droga5 London and IKEA Reverse Campaign To Launch Saudi Arabia Buyback Service

The campaign also reverses IKEA's hot dog to 'dog hot'

By Creative Salon

09 September 2026

IKEA Alsulaiman is flipping everything on its head with Reverse Shop, a launch campaign for the brand’s new Buyback Service in Saudi Arabia. The new service acts as a step forward in IKEA Alsulaiman’s circular efforts and sustainability commitment.

With the brand’s new Buyback Service, customers sell their used IKEA furniture and IKEA buys it back. It’s shopping, in reverse. To launch it, every element of the campaign flips iconic IKEA assets. The BILLY bookcase, the famous STRANDMON yellow wing chair and other pieces are shown from behind. From headlines to prices, everything is backwards.

It’s a campaign designed to make people look twice.

The idea kicks off with a social teaser featuring the ‘DOG HOT,’ a backwards take on the brand’s iconic hot dog, accompanied by the message ‘IKEA goes reverse on September 6.’ The DOG HOT was created for the campaign teaser stunt using real IKEA buns and sausages.

On launch day, IKEA officially rolls out its first backwards campaign. Digital ads will present IKEA furniture, prices and headlines backwards, and films will play in reverse, complete with backwards music. Users of the IKEA app will receive this surprising push notification: “?yub ew dna lles uoy fi tahW”. Email newsletters will announce the campaign, written backwards, of course. A backwards IKEA Instagram account will post reverse content. And influencer activations will challenge creators to try everyday activities backwards, demonstrating that while doing things in reverse can be difficult, reverse shopping at IKEA is easy.

The campaign marks Droga5 London’s first project for IKEA Alsulaiman and will run across social, digital, film, CRM, IKEA’s website and app, as well as in-store communication and other media.

Rami Rihani, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer at Alsulaiman Group, said: ‘The strongest ideas are often the simplest. IKEA’s Buyback Service reverses the traditional relationship between IKEA an d our customers: they sell and we buy. We loved the idea of our ads doing the same. It’s an idea that rewards people when they see it, using the familiarity of IKEA in an unexpected way. It’s been a great first project with Droga5 London, bringing a new perspective that complements the work we’re already doing and finding new ways to connect with our customers.’

Juliana Paracencio, Executive Creative Director at Droga5 London, said: ‘The idea was almost annoyingly simple. IKEA’s Buyback Service is shopping in reverse. So we reversed IKEA. The logo, the furniture, the copy, even the hot dog. Once we landed the thought, the job was not getting in the way of it. The temptation is always to add more, but this idea was all about keeping things simple and pure.’

Tara Ford, Chief Creative Officer at Droga5 London, said: ‘Iconic brand. Brilliant service. Bold and simple idea. It's a killer combination for any campaign.’

The Dog Hot teaser launches September 3rd, followed by the full Reverse Shop campaign on September 6th in Saudi Arabia.

IKEA Alsulaiman is the official franchise holder for IKEA in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.