March 10, 200817 yr Ikea has the Euro-urban vibe as well. At least it's at Union Centre as opposed to Tylersville or Monroe which is uber-sprawl. While Tylersville has its own share of sprawl, it is naive to think that Union Centre isn't worse or at least on the same level. Remember Tylersville is is an older exchange than Union Centre that includes bike paths and sidewalks straddling it with a large parcel of park land at the former Voice of America, plus an older housing stock that tends to have a grid layout street system although many still dump to the main artery. Again, Tylersville is suburban sprawl but it is not nearly as bad as that mess at Union Centre. I know what are you saying, but Union Centre is closer to the urban core and doesn't exacerbate the tendency to spread things out.
March 11, 200817 yr I'm blogging live from Ikea's parking lot right now. Are you getting a "scoop"? Are you and Barack picking out an area rug?
March 11, 200817 yr This poor bloke says his WIFE came up with the idea for him to camp there overnight, yea right!! The West Chester IKEA doesn't open until Wednesday, but some eager shoppers are already in line. "I've been living in Ohio for seven years now and I've been waiting for an IKEA since I got here," said Matt Lanzoff, of Fairfield. He's not the only one. 9News found other people willing to set up camp and brave the elements to be one of the first customers in the door Wednesday – and get a chance of winning gift cards. By the way, Lanzoff says it was his wife's idea that he sleep outside the store.
March 11, 200817 yr I'm blogging live from Ikea's parking lot right now. Are you getting a "scoop"? Are you and Barack picking out an area rug? Persian of course!
March 11, 200817 yr >There is one of those up the road, it's called Traders World, you know right next store to Butter Jesus Yeah well my store would not have a t-shirt airbrush stand for custom Taz and No Fear designs. How come nobody told me Trader's World repainted their horse red? And randomly added two palm trees to the sign?
March 11, 200817 yr I wonder what's the point of being the first inside when it opens. I'm sure they will not be the first to buy something.
March 11, 200817 yr How come nobody told me Trader's World repainted their horse red? And randomly added two palm trees to the sign? You didn't ask.....
March 11, 200817 yr This poor bloke says his WIFE came up with the idea for him to camp there overnight, yea right!! The West Chester IKEA doesn't open until Wednesday, but some eager shoppers are already in line. "I've been living in Ohio for seven years now and I've been waiting for an IKEA since I got here," said Matt Lanzoff, of Fairfield. He's not the only one. 9News found other people willing to set up camp and brave the elements to be one of the first customers in the door Wednesday and get a chance of winning gift cards. By the way, Lanzoff says it was his wife's idea that he sleep outside the store. SO SAD!!!!
March 11, 200817 yr I'm blogging live from Ikea's parking lot right now. Are you getting a "scoop"? Tensions are high as people are jockying for position. People discussing futons here, lamps there and Swedish meatballs everywhere.
March 11, 200817 yr http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZnwmvZhDz4 Watch out for the turkeys Rando! :wink:
March 11, 200817 yr I wonder what's the point of being the first inside when it opens. I'm sure they will not be the first to buy something. The first 100 customers get a free arm chair.
March 12, 200817 yr Honestly folks...how much did Ikea pay Cin Weekly for the 14-page spread? Article after article in the Enquirer? I see The Enquirer's cowtowing as part of its battle with the Dayton Daily News to claim as much of Butler County as possible. And it does that by kissing Butler County's ass at every possibility.
March 12, 200817 yr Crowd builds for Ikea opening BY AMBER ELLIS | [email protected] WEST CHESTER TWP. -- With hours to go before Ikea opens, hundreds of shoppers wrapped around the front of the building in anticipation of what store officials say could be the first of thousands of visitors today. By 6 a.m., hundreds huddled in front of the blue and yellow behemoth, awaiting the Swedish furniture retailer's opening. Some people had staked out the West Chester Township business for nearly 48 hours, the maximum allowed by the store. Most, though, trickled in this morning, bundled in layers of clothing for the 30-degree weather before opening. As busloads of store employees, Ikea followers and the just plain curious arrived, they’re being greeted by music and roaming stilt-walkers. The next few hours will be filled with ceremonies for the two-story, 344,000-square-foot store.
March 12, 200817 yr In 2k3, most of my friends went on vacation and I got sick. Once better, while they were away, I realized there was an Ikea opening 20 min from my house in college park MD (I lived in DC at the time). I went with a buddy, and we camped out overnight to be number 11 and 12. The first three had been under a huge ikea tent sleeping in an Ikea bed for a week. They got to keep the bed, as well as a 5k Ikea gift card. The rest of us got free arm chairs (200 dollar value). I still love that chair... I couldn't bring myself (or miss work) to go up there for this one. I think one opening is all I needed to attend.
March 12, 200817 yr I don't really understand the motivation for camping out for a store's grand opening, even if Europe's version of Big Lots gives away a wonderful arm chair. I must admit that I have never been to an Ikea, nor have I witnessed an Ikea launch in another city. This opening has generated a huge amount amount of media attention. Is Ikea this good at manipulating the media at all of their store openings, or is this uniquely a Cincinnati thing?
March 12, 200817 yr I don't know but it's absolutely ridiculous. I heard a radio DJ talk about the grand opening in between songs. Insane.
March 12, 200817 yr Man. I mean, congrats to you guys for getting this, but .. IT'S A FLIPPING IKEA. Don't get me wrong. I actually happen to like a lot of Ikea's stuff, and it's always fun shopping there, but .. it's a flipping Ikea!
March 12, 200817 yr I don't really understand the motivation for camping out for a store's grand opening, even if Europe's version of Big Lots gives away a wonderful arm chair. I must admit that I have never been to an Ikea, nor have I witnessed an Ikea launch in another city. This opening has generated a huge amount amount of media attention. Is Ikea this good at manipulating the media at all of their store openings, or is this uniquely a Cincinnati thing? No, it is not just a Cincinnati thing. Same ridiculousness last year here with South Florida's opening.
March 13, 200817 yr Canton, Michigan also had the same hoopla as well so not, it's not just a "Cincinnati thing." "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
March 13, 200817 yr I just saw a teaser for the ten o'clock news where Jack Atherton implied that the opening of Ikea just might save Cincinnati from the nation-wide economic downturn. This is out of control.
March 13, 200817 yr I deleted the email by accident but the editors of Crain's in Cleveland were getting some digs at Cincy over this, of course Cincinnati has Ikea and Cleveland doesn't. :evil:
March 13, 200817 yr Is Ikea this good at manipulating the media at all of their store openings, or is this uniquely a Cincinnati thing? They did the same thing in Salt Lake.
March 13, 200817 yr Yeah, wherever they go, the masses follow...there are probably some Ikea groupies that go to as many openings as they can...I can just imagine they have a room dedicated to all the chairs they have gotten for free...
March 13, 200817 yr I just saw a teaser for the ten o'clock news where Jack Atherton implied that the opening of Ikea just might save Cincinnati from the nation-wide economic downturn. This is out of control. Recession? Hell no, not with a new Ikea.
March 13, 200817 yr They sent me this big ad in the mail, it shows you the prices, which I admit are very reasonable, but it also mentions meatballs and tells you how to say random obscure phrases in Swedish but I can't tell how to pronounce the words with those crazy accent marks.
March 14, 200817 yr I just saw the IKEA truck with a furniture display on the back drive down Vine in front of Lavamatic.
March 14, 200817 yr Why doesn't IKEA put one employee in an empty storefront somewhere downtown for eight hours a day just to take orders and display their best selling items?
March 14, 200817 yr Swedish Cult Opens Local Chapter By Burt Safer | Dealer staff writer Thu, Mar 13, 2008 WEST CHESTER - An insidious international cult that originated in Sweden has opened a local chapter this week in West Chester. The cult, named Ikea, is devoted to the teachings of Supreme Guru Ingvar Kamprad who promotes "world peace through particle board". The cult initiated an advertising blitz in the area this month which attracted thousands of converts. This was despite organized deprogramming attempts by local woodworkers against the cult's seductive philosophy of cheap furniture. "Supreme Guru Ingvar is the truth, and his furniture is the way," claimed new convert Mary Macauley of Hyde Park, "And his furniture of truth leads to true happiness, which is sitting in a Hallsta chair while I blow kisses to Ingvar's 72 Rolls Royces." Macauley, like many other local cult members, says she has already signed away last month's paycheck to the cult. Cult members tend to spend much of their free time inviting friends and family members to the Ikea temple. The rest of an Ikea cult member's grueling life is spent hand assembling the cult's disposable furniture, day and night. MORE: www.cincinnatidealer.com
March 14, 200817 yr The meatballs, were (are) great, they offerred a coffee mug which gave the owner a free coffee for life ( total savings..... 50 cents per visit ) as well. They did mess with the potato offerring as they have switched out the boiled red potatoes for mashed. The cook did not seem to think this was a temporary thing either.
March 14, 200817 yr I found an IKEA kitchen: http://huff.com/search/detail.php?MLNumber=1106632&PPropertyType=26&ListingAgentID=&frmaction=search
March 14, 200817 yr Why doesn't IKEA put one employee in an empty storefront somewhere downtown for eight hours a day just to take orders and display their best selling items? A great idea...in theory. You would have to do one of two things- Order the items into the storefront Pull inventory from the store's warehouse (or a central one) The first idea is nixed off the top because the stuff has to be brought in...when you do that, it screws with the inventory at the store itself and leaves less things there for shoppers to buy. The second Idea would be nice, except the distance between stores isn't like a macy's or sears or dillard's. The nearest stores are hours away, and it causes the customer to wait...and believe me, they don't want to wait anymore.
March 14, 200817 yr Why doesn't IKEA put one employee in an empty storefront somewhere downtown for eight hours a day just to take orders and display their best selling items? Because IKEA wants you to walk into their store looking for a chair, and leave their store with that chair, a rug, a clock, some ice cube trays, a spatula, a bookshelf, and a lamp. It's the same reason that their stores are 5 hours apart and most of their inventory is viewable on their website, but not orderable. They like the idea of people driving in from all over the region and buying more than they expected just because they made the trip. This is also why people actually plan IKEA trips together and explains much of the hoopla surrounding their grand openings. It increases their purchases per customer and adds to the mystique of their brand. I'm not ripping IKEA; I actually like the store a lot, but that's why they won't do that. I just saw the IKEA truck with a furniture display on the back drive down Vine in front of Lavamatic. That's a great idea. Their furniture is designed/scaled for small apartments, condos, and dormrooms, so getting their name out there early in OTR is a smart play.
March 14, 200817 yr I went last night, for one purpose and one purpose alone: to try to lingonberries that we are all so enamored with. But alas the restaurant was closed at 8:45. I was sorely disappointed.
March 14, 200817 yr I just returned from Ikea; to do the full loop it only took about 30 minuets. I can't say I was impressed, but I can't say I wouldn't ever go back either. Everyone had the swedish meatballs, which were actually pretty tasty.
March 15, 200817 yr Ditto on moving this to completed projects ASAP, it wastes good space on the current board!
March 15, 200817 yr IKEA prefab homes.... A new community of 93 pre-fab houses designed by Ikea is popping up as we read this, and you won't need to worry about putting it together. Ikea has teamed up with a British builder and they are making Swedish style prefabs for moderate income key workers such as nurses and teachers. Seen as a way for them to get onto the property ladder, these houses will sell for $260,000 for a two bedroom townhouse. Assembled in a factory nearby, they get to the site ready to be bolted together and take about 16 weeks from start to completion. The system is called BoKlok (Ikea speak for smart living) and was developed in conjunction with Ikea. Already in Glasgow, and now in Gateshead, the houses and apartments are designed with British and Ikea architects, built of sustainable materials and are energy efficient. They claim to use good planning principles in the surrounding community with lots of green space and parks, recycling facilities, and close to public transport. You even get a voucher for $500 worth of Ikea products and a session with their interior designer. :: Guardian http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/02/ikea-village-housing-england.php
March 15, 200817 yr Europe is going to hell in a handbasket. It's bad enough they're not a democracy anymore; now this!
March 16, 200817 yr I read one article (maybe above), that indicated that a good percentage of IKEA's merchandise actually is made in China.
March 18, 200817 yr I read one article (maybe above), that indicated that a good percentage of IKEA's merchandise actually is made in China. Confirmed....but since its IKEA and not Wal*Mart, y'all look the other way
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