On Feb. 13, the Ikea store opened up in Live Oak just off I-35 and Loop 410 Interchange by the Forum, so I decided to go in and see what all the hype was about.
My first experience at IKEA was that I had to find the exit for the store and it was not easy since I-35 is always packed with traffic. I eventually found the exit and got stuck in a long line of cars trying to get into IKEA. There were people who were guiding traffic and police officers telling us where to park, some people had to park on the opposite side of the highway and take a shuttle to the store.
When I got inside the store, it was a mad house. Children were running around, jumping on the beds, parents were trying to control them. Parents were trying to keep up with their kids, people ignoring which way to go and the stroller drop off.
photo by Dmitri Gleich
After surviving the utter chaos I made a list on the things that are good and bad
Pro’s
- They have great deals, including buy one get one half off chocolate.
- They have good food, especially their meatballs and doughnut holes.
- Nice furniture. Since IKEA is from Sweden all the furniture names are in Swedish and English so it’s fun to pronounce.
- They even have $4 succulents.
Cons
- People walking the wrong way, IKEA has a certain way you can go and it has arrows, but people choose to ignore it.
- Children were screaming at the top of their lungs.
- Strollers everywhere. The store is kind of small so I don’t see why you need to have strollers being pulled around, they have shopping carts to put kids in.
- Ridiculous checkout lines, I was planning on buying a succulent, but when I got to the end the lines were long.
