Maybe it’s a good thing that despite pleas from the people of southwestern Ontario, Ikea refuses to open a store in my part of the province. They say we don’t meet their criteria for population density. We might be better off because of it.
A psychologist who studied couples when they shopped at Ikea and later, as they assembled furniture together, found the retailer is a relationship killer! As reported by the Huffington Post, she tells the Wall Street Journal that couples dig in their heels over furniture selections and turn choosing a couch into a life-or-death struggle. The firmness of the seat cushions becomes, “how important am I to you?”
Once the flat-packed boxes are home and the Allen Keys are out, the real stress begins. I can relate. I once insisted I could build a huge shelf system by myself but didn’t consider that I was in an area too small to stand the thing up once I was done. I seriously thought about just leaving it on the floor and walking over it for the rest of my life. My then-husband took on the unenviable task of loosening the unit’s 6,000 screws, moving it into place and tightening them again. The psychologist goes so far as to call these products, husband killers.
Ikea responded to the study by reminding customers that for $79, give or take, you can have your item assembled. But where’s the fun in that?!?