What's up wid dat? We admit to being caught out on this issue. Amanda wrote in:
I am amazed that no one, including AT, has mentioned the prospect of a new IKEA to be opened in Red Hook, Brooklyn. Sure, this will be more convenient for alot of New York City dwellers but has anyone considered the cost to the neighborhood?
And do you really believe this one will be any better?
What do we think? We think that City Council has approved the idea this month, but that it still needs further approval. We think that Ikea says it will bring 600 jobs to Red Hook along with traffic jams.
We like Ikea.
But we are skeptical of this being an improvement. Quality and service is so important in these stores, and the more of them there are, the more we see it slide. We would like to see this store open ALONG with a worldwide Ikea campaign to gussy-up their old colors and reinspire shoppers and workers alike. We want more air in this balloon. (Thanks, Amanda) MGR
I'm in Dallas, and I have to say it's amusing to hear of so many IKEAe clustered in one region when I can salivate at the thought of having one - just ONE - within 30 minutes of me, instead of having to drive for five hours or pay the exorbitant shipping fees. Be grateful you have a choice!
It will be a grand, grand day when IKEA opens in my area next summer. There were many of us who participated in a petition to get IKEA here, and we're all thrilled they'll be open in less than a year.
IKEA will bring a fresh aesthetic to Dallas and I think it will change they way people see and live in their homes.
Viva IKEA!
This is a big issue in Red Hook. I don't live there so it is easy for me to say preservation is the way to go...it's so pretty in the summmertime near the water. But when you drive through all the projects you see just how much jobs are needed.
Is it just me or has anyone else finally given up on IKEA products? I don't mean because of their horrible customer service or their lack of stock (as per the last discussion), but because of the shoddy quality of their merchandise. The conclusion I've reached from trying to have stylish yet affordable furniture via IKEA is that the tackiness of poor construction completely overshadows any style I may have hoped to gain. Not to mention that having to replace the stuff that falls apart ends up being not cheap in the long run.
I wish Ikea would open up a smaller type store in NYC. Kind of like how Home Depot has.
They would make a killing with new college kids decorating there dorms. Right now all those kids go to is Bed Bath and Beyond.
Like I like going to IKEA to get the little items, votives, glasses etc, but not worth the trip and hassle of going.
Too true. A little Ikea goes a long way. A lot of Ikea just doesn't go...
I agree with JC wholeheartedly. IKEA has NO substitute.
I would add that if you go to IKEA-- or ANY store--- if you buy the WHOLE room set up (or plan to furnish your whole hosue form one single source), you're taking the low road (design-, creativity-, personal style- and imagination-wise), even in the highest-end store. But if you go into IKEA--or ANY store-- with a "curator's eye" and buy what you love (or what REALLY works for you), you'll be happy, short or long term. And that applies to ANY phase your life is in.
I fully agree with Sarah. Here in Europe we are also flooded with Ikea, and of course everyone went through the beginner's frenzy and bought all sorts of things there, but now I've come to feel proud when I've managed to furnish a room WITHOUT any Ikea item.
When I read your excellent article on low-carb furniture I instantly thought of Ikea which to me is synonymous with high-carb furniture :shoddily made, pretty only when brand-new, tiring to the eye because of its ubiquitousness and always wrong proportions.
Happily, its quality is so poor it doesn't even make to the flea markets!
OK kids... there you go again. Bitch Moan, Bitch Moan... it's tough when the store YOU LOVE SO MUCH dosen't live up to your almost impossible expectations. You get what you pay for... what were you expecting?
Now LEAVE IKEA ALONE!!! You know they rocked your
world at one point in your lives... don't diss them now that you've moved on to a new decorating phase in your lives!!!
First: Ikea is great for kids starting out. A decade ago, people out of school would have had to resort to much worse furniture (e.g. found items, thrifty couches that smell, etc.) Now they can have a couch. Is it the best couch in the world? No. Do they have something to sit until they work their way out of entry-level? Yes.
Second: 600 new jobs vs. another place for the city's (relatively) affluent to jog and push around $600 strollers is no contest to me. I hear you, though, it is a beautiful area. It's a shame we can't put parks and co-ops there and move the poor people to... to... oh, just move them somewhere less attractive.
the site for this store (near the red hook waterfront) is such an incredibly wonderful oportunity to do something urbanistically to renew and rejuvinate said waterfront, its a shame they (city council) are being lured to build commercially.
Being a resident of Red Hook for the past 3 years I would hope that the store does not get final approval The traffic here has been increasing and when you consider that the proposed store will be the largest IKEA store in the world the traffic it will bring will destroy the neighborhood. Regardless of what the City approves or what IKEA says is good for the neighborhood, the unique character of this place will be lost forever. Jobs can be created here without IKEA and and without noise and pollution.