No pick-up on this fun little story, so decided to put it on here:

A bizarre conspiracy theory claiming IKEA display furniture is larger than the product customers buy has emerged online.

Internet crackpots claim the Swedish furniture giant tricks customers into buying slightly smaller flat-pack kits than those seen in stores – and then pockets cash from the material saved.

Twitter user @prophethusband wrote: “My dad just called from the car to tell me there’s a conspiracy theory at IKEA where the showroom furniture is bigger than the ones you buy. He said it’s just by an inch or so but it’s enough to make you feel crazy.”

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

A true believer responded: “You're making MILLIONS of 10 foot couches. Using 5% less material on each one wouldn’t benefit them? Basic business amigo”, while another added: “They absolutely would save millions on materials with how many pieces they produce.”

Naysayers pointed that the conspiracy can be blown wide open by using a tape measure – and that IKEA provides paper tape measures in-store.

But one sleuth pointed out: “Does that mean the free tape measurers they have there have also been tampered with?!?!”

IKEA workers also pooh-poohed the theory, with one stating: “As someone who works at IKEA…. we take things straight from the warehouse.”

A spokesperson for IKEA said: “As much as we’ve enjoyed watching the conversation play out, we can confirm that our showroom products are exactly the same dimensions as those on sale.”

Subway has also been targeted by angry size-conscious customers who claimed the sandwich chain was selling footlong subs that were actually shorter. In 2017 the US appeals court threw out a class-action settlement that Subway deceived customers by selling ‘footlong’ subs that were less than a foot long.