KIM Jong-un has opened up a knock-off Ikea store in the middle of a luxury North Korean shopping mall without the company’s permission.
The brazen dictator made no attempt to disguise the fake store, even using exactly the same name and logo as the Swedish retail giant.
The Sun’s impression of Kim Jong-un putting up a flatpack furniture kit
What seemed to be an Ikea store appeared in a North Korean mall tour, prompting the company to clarify it has no legitimate branches theredprk.times/tiktok
The knock-off store featured in a tour of the Ryumgyong Plaza mall in Pyongyangdprk.times/tiktok
The counterfeit shop was spotted in a new video uploaded to TikTok, alongside other big names such as Dior, Chanel and Adidas.
The video gives a tour of the Ryumgyong Plaza mall, showing opening with the insistence: “Yes, we have Ikea Chanel Dior Rolex etc in North Korea”.
Viewers are shown into various stores inside the mall including Ikea, Chanel and Adidas – all of which are eerily quiet.
Tables and chairs are shoved together like a storage warehouse, instead of in Ikea’s signature walk through rooms
The UN imposed sanctions in 2006 banning the sale of western goods to the communist nation, meaning these stores would illegal.
It’s unclear whether genuine IKEA products are being sold in the outlet or if the wares are fake.
The UN imposed sanctions in 2006 banning the sale of western goods to the communist nation, meaning these stores would illegal to operate.
So, what’s going on? Can Kim Jong-un really pop down the road for a plate of Swedish meatballs?
The flatpack furniture phenomenon says not.
The company told Swedish newspaper Expressen: “There are no authorized Ikea retailers in North Korea.”
They added that violations of intellectual property rights are continuously monitored and “appropriate action taken”.
The furniture maker has 480 stores in 63 different countries and North Korea is not supposed to be one of them.
However, the mall video clearly shows a shop filled with desks, tables, chairs and other chipboard delights under the iconic IKEA logo.
So it looks like the DPRK state ordered the construction of a knock-off store without permission – or any effort to disguise the fact they had done so.
China is North Korea’s biggest trading partner and so it is possible that items intended for that market have been smuggled into North Korea.
However, China is also known for producing convincing replicas of high-end branded products which could be making their way into these illicit branches.
The same questions apply to the other brands shown off in the video which include Dior, Chanel, Adidas and SK-II.
If the products on sale are genuine, it flouts UN sanctions in place since 2006 which bans the sale of luxury goods to North Korea.
This would not be the first time Kim has been caught ignoring the restrictions.
APThis is not the first time Kim has been caught presiding over knock-off western outlets[/caption]
The video showed a room full of clothing apparently branded as Adidasdprk.times/tiktok
Another store appeared to be stacked full of Chanel fragrancesdprk.times/tiktok
In 2019, his country spectacularly mocked the UN sanctions by opening a John Lewis-style shop flogging western brands like Rolex and Nike.
It’s also possible that the stores don’t exist or operate at all, and that this was all a front for the propaganda campaign.
Niklas Swanström, a Swedish political scientist specialising in North Korea, said this mall tour is a classic example of DPRK propaganda.
He said: “Nothing happens in North Korea without the involvement of the state.
“Since this is published on TikTok, it means that the North Koreans who have access to Tiktok – and can release films – do so with the approval of the state.
“It’s not that the common man has access to Tiktok.
“That is absolutely not the case.”
Credit: Pen NewsThis department store that opened in 2019 made a mockery of the tough UN sanctions[/caption]
Credit: Pen NewsPictures taken inside Daesong Department Store in Pyongyang show shoppers browsing luxury brands such as Rolex[/caption]
This video says it is exhibiting the Ryugyong plaza shopping mall, central Pyongyang, which opened in 2023.
It was posted by the DPRK Times account which claims to “seek the truth and help people understand Korea”.
Shiny videos portraying life in North Korea as ordinary and pleasant have become an increasingly common sight on social media.
Most of the comments under these posts accuse the videos of being “North Korean propaganda”, met with only occasional efforts from the channels to argue otherwise.
NORTH Korea has a history of appearing to sell good from brands without a licence to do so.
If the items sold are genuine, then this flouts UN-imposed sanctions banning the sale of western goods to the country.
It could be that the stores are selling replicas, or that they are smuggled into North Korea after being sold to different countries.
Some of the most recognisable names sold in knock-off stores include:
Adidas
Dior
Chanel
Ikea
Rolex
Tissot
Fila
The vlog tour signed off with a cheery farewell and a touch of national pridedprk.times/tiktok
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