apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I used them a coupe times years ago when the Emeryville store first opened - and it worked out great.

I did have a damaged item, and I simply called the store and they had a replacement delivered and the damaged piece picked up. (Of course, I had to remind them that I don't drive - and that I would contest the charge on my card if they refused to take care of their problem)

I've used them before and in Toronto, they are great. No issues with time or damaged items.

We've used them several times in Austin and each time it was fine. We had our kitchen cabinets delivered -- a lot of boxes -- and the men carried them in -- up the hill in front of our house in July -- and stacked them up carefully just where I asked. Another time the delivery was late but the driver called and when he finally came he was apologetic.

What are their prices like?

my boyfriend and i had a HORRible experience with ikea delivery in new york (and for the record, i love ikea -- their design concepts and very fair prices -- so i was not biased against them at all). to make a very long story relatively short, we ordered a bunch of stuff, the biggest part of our order being a big sectional sofa. we got everything else but the sofa when the delivery company brought our order. the next TWO MONTHS involved us calling ikea, us calling the delivery company, everyone promising to get back to us and never calling back, the delivery co. blaming ikea, ikea blaming the delivery co., and what was supposed to take two weeks wound up taking 8. we got an ikea couch in large part because of the promised fast delivery time -- we had a party coming up and wanted the sofa by that date.
the real kicker was this: an ikea rep told my boyfriend he would get results faster if he went to the store in person and demanded the sofa. so he did, and he nearly lost his mind trying to reason with the person at the counter. he was not taken seriously, he was offered the floor model (!) again and again because it could be delivered that day, he was not able to secure a delivery date or even the whereabouts of our sofa, and eventually told it would be better to go home and contact an ikea customer service rep. and that someone would call him back. tomorrow.
we did finally get our couch, but are traumatized by our experience.

used it at the palo alto ikea. low flat rate, timely delivery, no problems whatsoever. easiest thing ever -- up to the point of having to assemble the items afterward.

We used it in Manhattan and it was ok, but not great. It was cheap and quick and relatively easy, but they didn't deliver one item - luckily it was only about $12 out of the $1000 worth of stuff that was delivered. After many attempts at calling and no one making any effort on our behalf, we just wrote it off as it wasn't really worth our time. I think if they delivered it themselves instead of contracting out these problems would be resolved.

When I used it it was decent. They called me before to confirm and I told them I lived in a 3rd floor and there was no elevator. When the guys arrived one complained about the stairs and said that he couldn't do it. I had just moved in and had purchased other items at ikea and Target and told him to look around that I had brought all that stuff up by MYSELF (a tiny woman), so they could do it to. No more complains after that!!!

@reedtricia:

I know the feeling well. In your case they probably sold your sofa out from under you and had to wait for it to be reshipped from Europe.

I ordered a sectional sofa from IKEA and my delivery showed up with two improper ends (two right-L's). Incidentally they told me the sofa would be delivered at noon and it ended up being delivered at 6:30 a.m.

When I called IKEA immediately after delivery I was told that I'd need to speak to the delivery co, whom had actually directed me back to IKEA. Once connected to the right person I was told that IF MY CORRECT PIECE WAS STILL AVAILABLE (and there was only one left according to their inventory), it would be delivered at 7pm that evening, and someone would call me back to confirm a delivery time. Well, no one called me back. I called them again at 6pm and was told they weren't delivering/picking up the wrong piece that evening.

I was told that it would take 3 days for them to process the error, decide WHO was at fault (!), and THEN they'd schedule delivery. In the meantime they insisted on leaving the one piece I paid for in their inventory, free to be bought by another customer. If it HAD been purchased within the three days I, like you, would've had to wait 8-10 weeks for replenishment stock to be shipped from overseas.

The correct piece finally arrived but didn't quite fit with the original end-piece that I kept. There's now a incongruous gash large enough to slip a hand in in-between the two sections. Knowing that returning the newly delivered section meant I'd be living with a half a sofa for 8-10 weeks, I decided to just cut my losses and cover the space with pillows.

The ikea in Bolingbrook, as far as I know, doesn't do the delivery thing, but they do have vans you can rent directly from them and deliver the stuff yourself if it won't fit in your car. Personally, I'd rather go get the stuff myself since then I know i've got exactly what I bought and nothing is missing. That whole 'contracting out' stuff is always a hassle...the movers won't take responsibility and neither will the store, leaving the customer without a resolution. Home Depot is notorious for pulling that kind of cr@p.

I've order IKEA online for larger things I couldn't get myself. The company that was contracted was very professional and courteous, and everything arrived in perfect condition.

I wish that had been the case when I moved myself into a new place this year... I was careless and now my bed frame looks rather mangled.

I wish Ikea used the same folks that Crate & Barrel uses. I've had deliveries from both. While the Ikea delivery was fine, it was just way more expensive that it needed to be comparatively. I also hate that they don't make smaller items available for delivery. The nearest store is just out of reach for me.

I had one problem once. My sister bought me a coffee table over the phone for xmas, and they delivered it, but never contacted me as to when it would be delivered. So I wasnt home when they dropped it off and instead dropped it at the closest post office. Well, I couldnt lift the thing, didnt have a car, and the post office was 8 blocks away. Oh and it was a -30C our. Awesome. Took me weeks to find friends to carry it to my apartment. The post office was nice enough not to throw it out on me.

We had a not-great but pretty laughable experience with two couches delivered from the Burbank IKEA. The sectional was intended for our (downstairs) living room, while the loveseat was to go upstairs to our study. But the delivery guys wouldn't take the loveseat upstairs BECAUSE IT WAS INTENDED FOR USE IN A LIVING ROOM. (At least, that was their excuse.) I'm only 4'10", but I finally managed to haul the thing up the stairs.

Needless, to say, I would have happily tipped them well for delivery, but wound up giving them nothing.

laura in la..: haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

We live in Burlington, VT and the closest store is in Montreal. It's easy enough to run up and get a bunch of little things and bring them back over the border without a hassle but furniture is another story. Last winter, we ordered several pieces of furniture on-line and opted to have it delivered. It was very, very expensive...there shipping charges are through the roof. It took several weeks and when the day finally came that they would deliver, they called and said my road had a "weight restriction" and they weren't allowed to drive their large truck to my house. They asked if I wanted to pay an additional $300 to split the load into two smaller trucks. I said no and we arranged to have them deliver everything to my husband's work address. Then we had to figure out how to get it home. Anyway, we got it all squared away and got the stuff home. It was all packed well and everything was in one piece. All in all, it wasn't a horrifying situation but next time I need big pieces from IKEA, I'll probably rent/borrow a truck and drive to the Stoughton, MA store.

Oops, I meant to say, "...THEIR shipping charges are through the roof."

IN the parking lot of the Stoughton Ikea....MANY uhauls, rented vans from hardware stores, Home Depot..etc...outside lot..looks like there is an area designated for those shoppers..