While we were out and about enjoying some phenomenal weather yesterday, my wife mentioned that she would like to check out the new IKEA store in Round Rock. I had been there once, and I cringed inwardly a little bit, because I was familiar with the layout there. However, they do have a massive number of inexpensive products, so I was game.
When we first arrived, my wife attempted to sit in a chair that looked to be made of nylon on a frame made of plastic or perhaps metal, and it sort of dumped her onto the floor on her behind. We mocked the chair and its odd design, along with the name, which was probably a Gurkel or a Haafendag or a Klonturv or something 
similar. My son (who gets his smart aleck gene from his dad) quickly said, "Are we just here to make fun of the furniture?" Then, as I was laughing, he followed up with, "Are you going to put that in your blog?" I told him that I just might.
Since I haven't been to any other IKEA stores previously, I'm not sure if they are all laid out the same way or not. In the case of "our" location, however, it reminds me very much of being lost in a corn maze. Once you are inside and browsing, there is a specific path that you must follow in order to (eventually) find the exit.
Walking at a brisk pace, I would estimate that it takes 10 minutes or more to get out once you are trapped inside. I had to leave before the rest of my family in order to get home and meet an electrician, but my wife later mentioned that, although they stopped for a snack at the in-store cafe, she still felt like the proverbial man crawling through the desert by the time they reached the exit safely.
Despite their best efforts at merchandising, IKEA didn't manage to convince us to purchase that much yesterday, although my wife did pick up a few items. I have thus far steered clear of any bigger ticket purchases there, mainly because any time I am visiting a friend or client's house, I can typically pick out the IKEA furniture with ease, if I'm being honest. That being said, they seem to have some excellent values, so I'm sure that others will easily be able to pick out our stuff soon, too.
Speaking of corn mazes, please enjoy this clip from "Human Giant", which is probably among my favorite comedy shows:
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Jason,
Same set up everywhere it seems. I went to the first Ikea in the state of Washington about 6 weeks after it had opened. It is to this day still the craziest shopping experience I have ever encountered. There were SOOO many people there (it was a saturday, but still) that it was almost unbearable. It was almost like you had to move at the pace of the crowd and like you said........there are no 'outs'. Once you get in there, you have to go through ALL of the display rooms. Interesting merchandising concept for sure.
Can you imagine if other retailers tried that? Can you think of another one that does? We have a grocery chain here that does something similar, but nothing to the degree Ikea does.
Jason, I've never bought anything at IKEA either and only been there once. You certainly can tell the IKEA furniture when going to someone else's home. I've seen some people whose homes look like they are straight out of an IKEA catalog. Inexpensive, but very functional. I'm surprised that Katerina has never heard of IKEA -- aren't they like the biggest furniture retailer in the WORLD?
I'd always wanted to walk through a real corn maze and finally got the chance this past Fall while visiting a friend in New Jersey. It's not all it's cracked up to be.
That is sooo funny! I have only been to IKEA once...for that reason! Well, that and I think they're furniture looks like those plastic toddler playsets, you know the ones with the slides and all the different colors. However, it's quite an ingenius layout if you think about it. They make sure you see EVERY single item that they have in stock before they let you go...
If I could get all of my listings into a cornmaze like set-up I would do it!!! LOL!
I'm tolerably fond of IKEA, myself. Especially for little bits of staging items. And I once got an entire bedroom for my daughter from IKEA and was able to bring it home from Houston in the back of a small pickup and put it together myself - that was nice. Some things are not so great, others are simply brilliant ideas or executions of whatever they are (I love, love, LOVE my IKEA can opener, for example).
For that "trapped" feeling, here's the trick. At the beginning of the maze, there's a map of the place. It shows the "shortcuts" where you can cut through from one arm to another.
It may not be for everyone, but it seems to be working. The guy who owns it (it's privately held, we checked, wanting to buy stock many years ago), Ingvar Kamprad, started out selling items from his garden shed and from that, with an idea, is now in the top four richest people in the world.
Don't ever go on a Saturday or Sunday if you can help it, though - it really IS a cattle call. Wednesday mornings are usually good.