I've been to IKEA's in a few states: VA, NC, MA as well as a few in the UK and Belgium & France. To me they're so similar it's awesome!

I've been to the IKEA in Shanghai. Too cool!

I've been to the IKEA in Israel- it's funny, the signs are illegible (at least if you don't read Hebrew), but all the stuff's the same.

Been to Ikea many times. Nothing changed, there all the same.

In Germany, it's pronounced ekea, as the I is pronounced as an e.

http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ny/news/worker-complaints-at-ikeas-us-factory-design-news-4112011-143862

Still promoting Ikea nonetheless, I see.

Never could figure out why IKEA picks their locations. Here in North Carolina they picked Charlotte as their spot. Raleigh would have been a better and more central location as it's the capital and also has more universities and businesses. Charlotte is a sinking ship. Wishing IKEA would relocate to Raleigh, I'd be there every day.

Um ... they look the same.

@ Helgaj, not sure how they do it in America, but here in the UK they chose specifically outside the city as its cheaper, and there is more space. They then offer a free shuttle from the nearest tube or train station. There are 3 in the Greater London area and all are a nightmare to get to if you live in central London as I do. Worth it though, even if just for the 50p hotdog. :)

Ikea is not cool and awesome - Ikea is the target of racial discrimination complaints, a heated union-organizing battle and turnover from disgruntled employees. Workers complain of eliminated raises, a frenzied pace and mandatory overtime. Think twice before you buy that 19.99 bookshelf - it comes at a much more expensive human price.

IKEA refuses to sign up to the industry standard international Rugmark which guarantees - free trade products-style - that child labour has not been used in the manufacture of its products...how does it feel to walk on a rug made by a 10 year old?

IKEA is one of the biggest tax dodgers in the world according to the Berne Convention.

They are actually a DUTCH company -- the better to avoid taxes and scrutiny.

Oh, and did you know that they are the largest charitable foundation in the world, larger even than the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation? The only difference being that the Gates Foundation actually disburses money and tries to make the world a better place; IKEA not so much.

It's really not impressive to see how much AT gushes over and promotes IKEA. IKEA is a bad corporate citizen and doesn't need the promotion.

(nice to see I am no longer the lonely voice against IKEA on AT).

I love IKEA's Chinese name because I find it so clever. It vaguely sounds right phonetically (yee-gee-a), but the best part is that the two characters mean "suitable/fitting" and "home", so the name means "perfect for your home" :)

I should explain that IKEA is the largest NON-PROFIT in the world. As part of their tax-avoidance strategy IKEA has created a structure which channels profits into a nontaxable charitable foundation managed exclusively by members of the Kamprad family (who live just a few kilometres down the road from me, here in Switzerland, famously home to many of the world's tax dodgers).

Oh -- and IKEA is the largest furniture maker in the world, and the single largest purchaser of forestry products. They bill themselves as "green" and "environmentally responsible", but of course that is just a clever marketing campaign (as are all their claims to ethical and responsible corporate behaviour).

Their inspectors themselves acknowledge that they are far too thin on the ground to be able to provide any meaningful assurance that sustainable forestry practices are followed. Most of the wood comes from Russia, which is rife with corruption and illegal logging.

"China is Ikea's largest supplier of solid wood furniture, according to the company. In 2006, about 100 Chinese factories manufactured about one-fourth of the company's global stock. Russia is Ikea's largest source of wood, providing one-fifth of its worldwide supply. Ikea executives said they are confident this wood is legal, because the company dispatches auditors and professional foresters to factories and traces wood to logging sites.

But Ikea has only two foresters in China and three in Russia, the company said. It annually inspects logging sites that produce about 30 percent of the wood imported by its Chinese factories, more commonly relying on paperwork produced by logging companies and factories.

"Falsification of documents is rampant," acknowledged Sofie Beckham, Ikea's forestry coordinator. "There's always somebody who wants to break the rules."

Sending more people to inspect logging sites would make Ikea's products more expensive.

"It's about cost," said Ikea's global manager for social and environmental affairs, Thomas Bergmark. "It would take enormous resources if we trace back each and every wood supply chain. We can never guarantee that each and every log is from the right source.""

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/31/AR2007033101287_2.html

IKEA is not as green or sustainable as it claims; and all of us who clamour for lower prices are complicit.

IKEA makes me think of "Fight Club"...

It makes me laugh when Americans act like going to another state is "traveling". Why wouldn't IKEA's in separate states be the exact same? The U.S. might be a big country but it's still one country. Overseas, I'd be more surprised if they were different.

@engill: That must be Cantonese because in Mandarin, the middle two characters are "jia jia" (pron. gee-ya gee-ya).

OMG, are we going to be subjected to this PC bashing every time something is posted about Ikea or some other company that's not perfect, run by sin free perfect souls? Please let it rest. I'll buy that 19.99 bookcase and be very happy because it's affordable.

@Barb in CT, I don't know what is your definition of PC, but AT actually wrote a post less than a week ago showing that Ikea is racist in their policies. What's more, the EIA filed a report directly implicating Ikea in the import of timber from Russia's korean pine and temperate hardwoods, home of the endangered Amur tiger.

Maybe read the report and raise your standards for what you consider, "PC".

http://www.eia-global.org/PDF/testimony--EIA--forests--oct07.pdf

From the Russian Natural Resources Minister:

"The impression you get there is that illegal logging has become an everyday economic affair
and common practice. Everything is covered with slabs of processed timber; there are saws
everywhere with Chinese workers, who as soon as we approach them forget Russian, and
Chinese too. Everybody sees it and nobody does anything.”

Well done, everybody. Way to give a damn about our ecosystems.

So then, IKEAcritics, what's the affordable alternative that's "green" and "racism free"? Wal-Mart, Costco, Target? I'm guessing they're no better and the "correct" (i.e. pc) alternatives are out of reach of ordinary folks.

Sorry to comment this many times, but, @dn - great question.

1. Flea markets where the furniture has already been made and will end up in the landfill if someone does not buy it.

2. Tag sales, especially if you know your neighbors. Most people who have these are perfectly good, honest people who need the money for their families.

3. Used furniture stores, again especially if you know the owners. Our local used furniture store is owned by a man who is a friend of my boyfriend's family and used to help care for his grandparents.

4. Swap with acquaintances. My hairdresser and I do clothing swaps all the time.

5. Freecycle. Doesn't get any more affordable than that.

6. Learn to reupholster your own stuff instead of tossing it out.

7. Ask your family and friends if they have furniture they are getting rid of.

8. Put up an ad at your local diner. Someone will surely come forward offering their used furinture at a good rate.

ps #7 is how I got most of my furniture. My friend gave me her stuff for $200 and in exchange I helped her move from W. Mass to Cape Cod.

Emmi, Nice try and good suggestions, but still not a realistic option for many people, especially if you want something new or that can't be found elsewhere. In many places, there are huge cultural biases against used things, especially for the household goods. And some things, mattresses are a great example, could harbor vermin and the like and probably shouldn't be shared. Plus, since the population is increasing, there just isn't enough existing stuff to go around, things do eventually wear out over time...

@daylight
Ikea is pronounced "eekeeah" (you get what I mean) in most languages other than English... because... that's how it's supposed to be pronounced.

The impression I get is that most products are the same everywhere, but some places will have more of everything. I wonder how many region-specific items they'd bother with, considering it narrows the market? Maybe in Japan they make kotatsu?

@dn: I understand what you're saying - but mattresses are not made of illegally logged timber. I'm talking about frames, tables, chairs and the like.

Used wooden furniture is no more likely to carry vermin than the wood harvested from the forests, which host tons of termites, fungi, beetles, lichen, etc.

And if you think it's hard to live without new furniture, try living without crops, clean water or air. Because that's where we're headed.

It can't be both ways. If someone is poor, they're better off swapping with a friend. If they can afford the luxury of new furniture, they can search for a truly eco-friendly product. At least look for reclaimed wood.

@Emmi - It's not just Ikea Emmi, it's the sudden (IMO), constant bashing of EVERYTHING...from made in China to Ikea to WalMart. I KNOW no retailer is perfect, but when when Craig's List/eBay & Goodwill don't have what I need, I'm going there. It's SO bad, I had a customer in my store complain about an item being made in Chili and not in the US. It was an imported Chilean hardwood cutting board! Where did he expect it to be made?

LOL some people will complain about anything, I suppose. Look, I wasn't suggesting we can always be perfect. I buy from big stores sometimes. But I have a Master's in environmental studies and what I learned about these retailers would make your hair stand on end.

For one, they label themselves as "green" when the participate in "restoration" projects. This is code for: they bought property, illegally filled in sensitive wetlands. Displaced or killed amphibians and birds who depened on the ecosystem, then were fined or charged with wetland violations and were required to conduct "restoration".

This involves a very weak effort to make up for the ecological damaged they've caused. So they "create" a new wetland. The one near our grad school that a big box store created, the Biology professors refer to it as "the ditch". It's basically a hole dug in the ground and filled in with silt-laden water. Not a single bird or amphibian has ever been seen using it.

They are actively destroying ecosystems then labelling themselves as environmental stewards just because they avoided paying a fine. It makes my skin crawl, and these days I'd do almost anything to avoid giving them a red dime.

@Bard in CT I that last comment was meant as a reply, sorry AT does not have a reply button. ps I think some nice stores with great furniture are using reclaimed wood, just fyi. That is a good solution! :)