Last but not least: Brain cap, turquoise

"Encourages role-playing in which children develop social behavior by imitating adults and inventing their own roles." Thus describes Ikea Sense and purpose of the turquoise "brain hood", which the furniture giant recently added to its range worldwide. Also in Switzerland, available for just under ten francs.

The brain cap, which seems a bit confusing at first, is part of the Lattjo series, which Ikea has been using since last November to encourage people to play. "This collection is intended to encourage young and old to play more with each other - preferably anywhere and anytime. It doesn't matter if you're 7 or 97 years old," Ikea wrote. The brain cap can already be seen in the four-and-a-half-minute promotional video released at the time. 

Whether Ikea's new product is really primarily about boosting role-playing games may be doubted. "The real target group seems to be party-hungry hipsters from the underground clubs of Berlin and the bratwurst stalls of the Ruhr region," suspects, for example, the Berlin Morning Post. The Berlin courier is overwhelmed with the abstract headgear and assumes it is a bathing cap: "Why children should play Mr. Super Smart in the bathtub, however, is somehow still not entirely clear to us..."

And the strange headgear is also spreading more and more on social media - mostly accompanied by incredulous comments. A lot of free attention - and presumably a lot of sales at the points of sale. Ikea just knows how to do it. (hae)