IKEA FURNISHES PARISIAN SUBWAYS  March 16, 2010

When I think about Parisian subways, the first thing that springs into my macabre little head is that scene in Irreversible with Monica Bellucci. It's everything you fear in public transport. Nipple-skimming sheaths, bad lighting and potential late-night violations. As unrealistic as this may be, this film has meant that I only catch cabs in Paris.

There is light at the end of the tunnel though. (Probably not the tunnel in Irreversible), but a few other tunnels around Paris. Because, well, everyone's favorite thing (aside from Victoria Silvstedt) to come out of Sweden, a.k.a IKEA, has come up with a guerrilla marketing campaign which involves furnishing Parisian subways.

There are lounges and lamps in Paris' St Lazare, Champs-Elysees Clemenceau, Concorde, and Opera subway stations that will remain for two weeks. The furnishings are from IKEA's new Ektorp and Karlstad collections, and the idea behind the stunt is to prove the quality and durability of their products- via the 'bum test' (i.e. see how much arse a couch can handle before it caves in).

This is a smart move from a company that everyone associates with affordability. Oh - and the subways look so great that I may be able to face them again. (Providing Vincent Cassel is somewhere in the vicinity).

For more photos and potential French husband spotting, look here.