Written by Kianna Best on Jun 19, 2025. Posted in Awards and Festivals

IKEA’s The Co‑Worker Roblox Campaign Lands Bronze at Cannes Lions

IKEA’s groundbreaking campaign, The Co-Worker, developed by MOTHER London, has been awarded a Bronze Lion in the Entertainment Lions for Gaming category at Cannes Lions 2025. The recognition not only affirms the creative excellence behind the campaign but also highlights the growing power of gaming platforms as strategic vehicles for brand engagement and recruitment.

Launched in June 2024, The Co-Worker reimagined the concept of virtual work by creating a fully operational IKEA store within the Roblox metaverse. Inside this digital environment, players could take on roles that directly mirrored real-world IKEA jobs. From managing the storeroom to running the Swedish Bistro, participants were invited to engage in a gamified experience that simulated an authentic career journey at IKEA. The innovation reached beyond play when ten UK-based players were selected for paid virtual roles, earning wages equivalent to real-life store staff. This initiative marked the first time a brand had offered genuine employment inside a gaming platform as part of a recruitment strategy.

The campaign resonated instantly with its target demographic, particularly Gen Z users who already spend significant time on Roblox. In less than two weeks, IKEA received over 178,000 applications for its virtual positions, outstripping high-profile TV casting calls for shows such as Love Island or The X Factor. The impact was not limited to the virtual realm. The campaign generated over two thousand pieces of media coverage and amassed more than sixteen billion earned-media impressions globally. Most notably, it led to a fifty percent increase in real-world job applications at IKEA, making it the company’s most successful recruitment initiative to date.

What set The Co-Worker apart was its strategic blending of entertainment, education, and employer branding. Rather than taking a traditional advertising route, IKEA invited potential employees to step directly into its world and experience its work culture firsthand. Players could explore different departments, shift responsibilities, and even rise into leadership roles, offering a low-risk and engaging preview of a real IKEA career. This approach effectively gamified recruitment while reinforcing IKEA’s commitment to innovation and inclusivity in the workplace.

The campaign also demonstrated how gaming environments can serve as powerful tools for experiential marketing. Instead of pushing a product or slogan, IKEA created a fully interactive space where values, work culture, and customer experience were conveyed through gameplay. The result was a deeper, more organic connection with users. For many, it was their first meaningful interaction with IKEA as an employer rather than a retailer, and the positive response suggests that the impact will be long-lasting.

MOTHER London executed a seamless cross-channel strategy to amplify the campaign’s reach. In-store pixelated installations mimicked the Roblox environment and created a feedback loop between the physical and digital. On social media, particularly TikTok and Instagram, short-form videos and user-generated content helped spread awareness. Coverage on LinkedIn further reinforced the campaign’s credibility within professional circles. The synergy between these channels ensured that The Co-Worker remained a persistent and engaging presence across media formats.

The Cannes Bronze Lion signals more than creative recognition. It acknowledges the campaign’s success in elevating the gaming medium from a promotional backdrop to a central platform for brand storytelling and recruitment. By choosing Roblox, IKEA and MOTHER London capitalised on a space that is both deeply social and creatively expansive. They understood that younger audiences are not merely passive consumers but active participants who value agency, exploration, and authenticity.

For the wider marketing and human resources industry, The Co-Worker represents a turning point. It challenges the traditional methods of employer branding by showing how immersive, gamified platforms can engage prospective employees in ways that job boards and recruitment ads cannot. The campaign’s ability to translate virtual participation into real-world action provides a compelling model for others to follow.

Images courtesy of IKEA