IKEA fan wants to know about IKEA BKK

[Suradit69]

Do they have a restaurant in the BKK one?

Not sure the locals would get into the meat balls! They do a cheap, simple breakfast here at Middle East one too

Not sure the locals would get into the meat balls!

Meat balls. European style.

Completely different, at least in terms of perception by the locals.

If you shop in IKEA in Thailand people assume that you're wealthy, whereas in the West it is considered more an "entry" market in terms of obtaining furnitures...

Items on offer and shop layout is mostly identical.

Well hey, SIZZLER is considered an upmarket restaurant for wealthy people by Thais... You have to see some of them dress up in their Sunday best to go and eat there!

You have to see some of them dress up in their Sunday best to go and eat there!

How would you know it was their "Sunday best?" Possibly they were slumming and dressing down for casual Friday to make the poor farang feel superior.Obviously you must have been eating there when you made the observation and felt out-classed.

I think you mean some Thai Visa posters. There was a thread where someone was complaining about the wine he got with the meal. I think it was Chateud d'cardboard box. He apparently thought he was dining with the elite and found the wine inferior to his usual plonk at McDonalds.

Edited February 12, 2014 by Suradit69

[belg]

the furniture, same as their food, is of very low standard

[AlanL1275]

You will love this Ikea. I have been in Ikea in the USA, and in Germany. You won't be disappointed.

Also has a small, snack restaurant, and a larger one in a different area.

[Sudgirl]

Hi, yes it's worth the trip and the shipping.

IKEA BKK is very well organised and much the same as the west, good products very well trained staff and good cheap food in restaurant etc.

We bought our kitchen there and a host of other stuff,spent a lot of money and was well worth it, only caution I would say is if buying lamps check they are fitted with thai plugs and not plugs for Europe.

We enjoyed our trip there and loved the savings we made by buying good quality.

Have a nice trip.

[larsjohnsson]

the furniture, same as their food, is of very low standard

The prices are also low. So if you like to have the best quality in furniture or food, then you don't go to IKEA

Sent from my GT-I9152 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[PaleoWolf]

We are planning an IKEA kitchen for the house we are building in Phitsanulok. They stock 90% of what is currently available in the UK as they are about a year behind. On our last visit the staff were very professional and produced a very good design layout for us. The IKEA kitchens have definitely improved anyway and are a very good option in Thailand taking into account price and quality. They also have the Modern Form acrylic tops as an option, but much cheaper than from Modern Form itself in CDC which is extortionate. We may take this top but there is also the option of a granite top which we would source ourselves (from Buntavoon), IKEA would just supply the units. They also deliver and fit up country for a fee of course.

It is quite easy to get to as there is a free shuttle bus service from the Udomsuk BTS station. I passed on the restaurant as it was bursting to the seams but MEGA Bang Na has loads of options.

[avander]

We are planning an IKEA kitchen for the house we are building in Phitsanulok. They stock 90% of what is currently available in the UK as they are about a year behind. On our last visit the staff were very professional and produced a very good design layout for us. The IKEA kitchens have definitely improved anyway and are a very good option in Thailand taking into account price and quality. They also have the Modern Form acrylic tops as an option, but much cheaper than from Modern Form itself in CDC which is extortionate. We may take this top but there is also the option of a granite top which we would source ourselves (from Buntavoon), IKEA would just supply the units. They also deliver and fit up country for a fee of course.

It is quite easy to get to as there is a free shuttle bus service from the Udomsuk BTS station. I passed on the restaurant as it was bursting to the seams but MEGA Bang Na has loads of options.

It sounds like they have staff to assist with selection and design from the Ikea range. Do they have this service for other areas such as lounge/entertainment areas or whole house or only for kitchens? Edited February 12, 2014 by avander

[solstan]

Do Ikea BKK offer the service of a knowledgeable Sales assistant to help with selection and purchase or a 'design' service? We're needing to buy a considerable amount of furniture such as large entertainment centre units. bookcases and storage units etc. I have a list and room dimensions already so it would be much easier to explain our likes in terms of style/look and work through a complete catalog with someone knowledgeable instead of traipsing back and forth with multiple rounds around the store.

They have the same help there as in other locations.

Both kitchens and other rooms can be tested with different furniture and help you decide both for price and locations of them in the room ...

http://www.ikea.com/ms/en_TH/rooms_ideas/planner_bestauppleva/index.html

Havent been on site but its right there on their page.

Delevery is avaliable all over Thailand, but you cant place an order via the WWW.

[atyclb]

Completely different, at least in terms of perception by the locals.

If you shop in IKEA in Thailand people assume that you're wealthy, whereas in the West it is considered more an "entry" market in terms of obtaining furnitures...

Items on offer and shop layout is mostly identical.

Well hey, SIZZLER is considered an upmarket restaurant for wealthy people by Thais... You have to see some of them dress up in their Sunday best to go and eat there!

not to mention how KFC fried chicken is eaten so elegantly and inefficiently with knife and fork LOL

Have had meatballs at ikea bangna and locals also like it as well as other menu stuff. many are upscale people and not taxi/motorbike driver style. the wharehouse area is the biggest i have yet seen and seen italy, usa, taiwan.

[tomloughney]

IKEA is what it is, great for quickly furnishing a room or small apartment for a few years stay, I did it for 2 college kids, half of the stuff is still floating around 10 years later. Good simple cheap stuff. The restaurant is a IKEA cafe, simple and different from local food, not expensive.

I also have some very expensive Walnut, Cherry and Teak furniture that is also about the same age as the IKEA stuff and I am beginning to tire of that also.

Some really cheap restaurants serve great food, and some serve shit food, same with high end places. So these comments are most likely just noise.

IKEA is a fun place, cheaper than an afternoon in a GoGo and not as noisy.

[John Egil]

Been there twice .. The prices there are the same as in Norway .And trust me , Norway is not cheap .. Most of the stuff they sell are made in Asia . Figure that out .. They must make a big profit here in Thailand .

[moogradod]

If the items are 60% the same as worldwide, then I assume that the quality is the same too. I live in Switzerland where quality expectations are high. I have never been disappointed with IKEA. I own some of their furniture for more than 15 years that look and perform the same as on the first day. Absolutely marvelous.

These high class IKEA range is a bit more expensive but then....where else to buy decent furniture in Thailand ? Chinese style abalone inlaid crazy expensive stuff - not to talk about the taste ? Your local furniture maker who sells the lowest quality imaginable ? Everything that I ever saw in The Mall or similar outlets in LOS is quite expensive and I doubt it is as good as IKEA. How about wine glasses, ktichen accessories etc - not to talk about forks, spoons or does anybody like the pressed steel plate items even on sale in Foodland.?

When I move to Thailand, IKEA will be the first furniture supplier I will look at. I will even bring some of their furniture with me in a container - like the chair I am sitting on right now and the writing desk I have just now in front of me. Stunnig quality for the price.

[AyG]

Out of curiosity I looked up the prices of a few items both in Thailand and in the UK, expecting the Thai price to be significantly higher because of import taxes. I had two surprises: (1) every single item I looked up was available in both countries, (2) for many items Thailand was actually cheaper.

UK prices (in parentheses) converted to THB at an exchange rate of 54:

Klippan pouffe 2290 (2700 )

Stenklover quilt cover + pillowcases 990 (810)

Skanka set of pans 1590 (2430)

Bumerang clothes hangers 169 (297)

Slitbar bread knife 850 (1188)

Dombas wardrobe 3490 (4320)

Hemnes bedframe 1190 (8910)

Edit for format - table looked OK in preview.

Edited February 13, 2014 by AyG

[Langsuan Man]

I have never liked the Ikea experience. Why should I be forced to see everything that they stock whether or not I have any interest in the displays.

Go in for one item and have to view thousands. Maybe shoppers like it, but I want what I want and then out

[bkkjames]

I bought some stuff there once. Loaded up the cart, paid, pushed the cart out the door to the parking lot and was stopped by a bunch of metal poles outside the door. Could take the cart no further.

Guess they are more concerned with one not being able to take their carts to your vehicle.

Maybe thats how its done in sweden?

I wont be back anytime soon.

Sent from my LG-P970 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[FalangBaa]

Out of curiosity I looked up the prices of a few items both in Thailand and in the UK, expecting the Thai price to be significantly higher because of import taxes. I had two surprises: (1) every single item I looked up was available in both countries, (2) for many items Thailand was actually cheaper.

UK prices (in parentheses) converted to THB at an exchange rate of 54:

Klippan pouffe 2290 (2700 )

Stenklover quilt cover + pillowcases 990 (810)

Skanka set of pans 1590 (2430)

Bumerang clothes hangers 169 (297)

Slitbar bread knife 850 (1188)

Dombas wardrobe 3490 (4320)

Hemnes bedframe 1190 (8910)

Edit for format - table looked OK in preview.

Stenklover, Skanka and Slitbar... I'm pretty sure all of those are bars on the 3rd floor of Nana Plaza.

[isawasnake]

I love having ikea here. I am not the hugest fan of many of their things, but here it is the best option imo. Index and SB just don't cut it in quality. That makes sense too, if you think about it. Ikea standards are more international, SB and that other true crap is just totally hideous. It is Thai style looks good on the surface and just total crap. While I will half agree that much of the Ikea stuff is kinda crap as well, it is not nearly as bad, and will last much longer. As an example I have a leather couch from Ikea and it is just worlds above the SB/index stuff. It is holding up well and the price was reasonable. Ikea is a great option to have at those price points in a country where it is hard to come across anything that is either cheap in price or of quality.

Edited February 13, 2014 by isawasnake

[JSixpack]

It's so nice to have yet another IKEA bashing thread. One of our forum hot buttons/troll magnets along w/ such words as McDonalds, Starbucks, and Russians.

So now we've heard it all again, much of it nonsense and silliness. Hope you've all enjoyed yourselves. Life's gotta have a bit of excitement, right?

Edited February 14, 2014 by JSixpack

[JesseFrank]

It's so nice to have yet another IKEA bashing thread. One of our forum hot buttons/troll magnets along w/ such words as McDonalds, Starbucks, and Russians.

So now we've heard it all again, much of it nonsense and silliness. Hope you've all enjoyed yourselves. Life's gotta have a bit of excitement, right?

HOW DARE THEY !!

Having an opinion or experience with a multinational, who's only concern is to make as much money as possible, that doesn't stroke with Jsixpack's rose tinted ideas.

They should be removed from the human gene pool without delay.

Right ?

[CWMcMurray]

Do Ikea BKK offer the service of a knowledgeable Sales assistant to help with selection and purchase or a 'design' service? We're needing to buy a considerable amount of furniture such as large entertainment centre units. bookcases and storage units etc. I have a list and room dimensions already so it would be much easier to explain our likes in terms of style/look and work through a complete catalog with someone knowledgeable instead of traipsing back and forth with multiple rounds around the store.

Not a chance.... Been there once would never return ....

Really no service to be spoken of.. It's a serve your self kind of place... You need to find what you want on your own and grab the ticket and then once you get to the end of the long and winding road... You will eventually get to the warehouse, which again is self serve, no employees to help regardless of how big the pieces you are trying to buy.

Then once you pay and try to bring the cart full of stuff to your car... Forget it, carts aren't allowed to go out to the parking lot.

So I hope you didn't come alone... As now one person needs to make down to the garage exit while the other person goes to get the car and make their way down to the garage parking area and back up to the loading area.

If you want delivery they charge extra and if you want them to set it up in your house they charge you another additional fee.

That may be fine in the west, but here in Thailand you have koncept and S.B Firniture that will delivery to your house and set up in your house for no additional costs

Also didn't like the fact that you

Were forced to walk this long and winding path through every single department before you could get to the w/h, check out and exit.

So better set aside at least a few hours if you plan to walk in the front door... If you have small kids, don't bring them... As after an hour of walking through they are ready to go, but no way to leave!!!

You are stuck till you get to the end of the long and winding road...

If the prices were really cheap it may make it worth it, but quality doesn't seem any better than Koncept/ S.B. And is more expensive

I'd give it a miss and if the best thing about a furniture store is its food... That says a lot.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Edited February 14, 2014 by CWMcMurray

[larsjohnsson]

It's so nice to have yet another IKEA bashing thread. One of our forum hot buttons/troll magnets along w/ such words as McDonalds, Starbucks, and Russians.

So now we've heard it all again, much of it nonsense and silliness. Hope you've all enjoyed yourselves. Life's gotta have a bit of excitement, right?

HOW DARE THEY !!

Having an opinion or experience with a multinational, who's only concern is to make as much money as possible, that doesn't stroke with Jsixpack's rose tinted ideas.

They should be removed from the human gene pool without delay.

Right ?

I would not call IKEA multinational like McDonalds and the other mentioned. The company is not even listed on the stockmarket. It's owned by a family. They control the foundation that own it. And the name IKEA is from his name. The man in that family. Ingvar Kamprad Elmaryd Agunnaryd. This man started it 1943 and still controll it. One of the richest person in the world

Sent from my GT-I9152 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Edited February 14, 2014 by larsjohnsson

[avander]

Do Ikea BKK offer the service of a knowledgeable Sales assistant to help with selection and purchase or a 'design' service? We're needing to buy a considerable amount of furniture such as large entertainment centre units. bookcases and storage units etc. I have a list and room dimensions already so it would be much easier to explain our likes in terms of style/look and work through a complete catalog with someone knowledgeable instead of traipsing back and forth with multiple rounds around the store.

Not a chance.... Been there once would never return ....

Really no service to be spoken of.. It's a serve your self kind of place... You need to find what you want on your own and grab the ticket and then once you get to the end of the long and winding road... You will eventually get to the warehouse, which again is self serve, no employees to help regardless of how big the pieces you are trying to buy.

Then once you pay and try to bring the cart full of stuff to your car... Forget it, carts aren't allowed to go out to the parking lot.

So I hope you didn't come alone... As now one person needs to make down to the garage exit while the other person goes to get the car and make their way down to the garage parking area and back up to the loading area.

If you want delivery they charge extra and if you want them to set it up in your house they charge you another additional fee.

That may be fine in the west, but here in Thailand you have koncept and S.B Firniture that will delivery to your house and set up in your house for no additional costs

Also didn't like the fact that you

Were forced to walk this long and winding path through every single department before you could get to the w/h, check out and exit.

So better set aside at least a few hours if you plan to walk in the front door... If you have small kids, don't bring them... As after an hour of walking through they are ready to go, but no way to leave!!!

You are stuck till you get to the end of the long and winding road...

If the prices were really cheap it may make it worth it, but quality doesn't seem any better than Koncept/ S.B. And is more expensive

I'd give it a miss and if the best thing about a furniture store is its food... That says a lot.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

After contacting the store by email they told me if I come on a weekday when they are not so busy they would be happy to provide personal assistance and purchase advice so I am currently arranging just that. We have provided an initial list using their website shopping list function which is great initial selection and checking availability. It saves time in the shop and we emailed them the list as a starter.

You can get straight to the warehouse without doing the rounds of their displays too; you only need to ask.

We did purchase some stuff from Koncept at the store near the flyover at Sukhumvit, Pattaya and while the product, delivery, assembly & setup service was great I found their range considerably less than Ikea who seem to get it right and produce a product style that we, at least, like in most categories.

Can't say I like the self assembly job that much but the products have certainly improved over the years and at least fit together, are relatively quick to assemble and quite solid after.

If you have the time it can be quite self satisfying to look back on one's assembly work too. I'm usually not that handy but Ikea makes me feel like I am.

[HooHaa]

I have never liked the Ikea experience. Why should I be forced to see everything that they stock whether or not I have any interest in the displays.

Go in for one item and have to view thousands. Maybe shoppers like it, but I want what I want and then out

like it or not, the business model is brilliant. go in for one thing, come out with 10.

no retailer in the world is going to argue with that.

they make tons of money on the low cost high mark up items that people impulse buy.

i know very few people that dont have a couple of fleece ikea blankets lurking near the sofa or in the guest room.

[isawasnake]

You can't ever talk about every item, but in general the items from Ikea hold up MUCH better that SB and Index. Much much better actually. I am surprised people don't know this more prevalently. The material on many of the couches from Index is just totally hideous. It looks ok in a showroom, but lasts about a year before deteriorating. You can actually feel the low quality of the material if you are paying close attention.

It is kind of a pain to get the stuff from Ikea to home. But, I did a whole condo's worth in one shot, and the price was the same as if I bought 1 item. So it is worth it to keep in mind it is a flat fee. Shipping it all to my place was like .5% of my entire purchase, so not a big deal, and they lugged it up the elevator too. I was actually very pleased with the fee. It was not ikea, it was another company of course, but I was very pleased with them.

Putting it together was not the easiest, I am pretty handy too. I found the instructions not to be the greatest. At times, I was simply asking myself, after having worked on my own cars for years, how in the world could say a housewife do this??? No way. But, I was able to do it, and it really wasn't so bad if you have the minimal tools and skills. The no verbiage instructions are sometimes just total crap though.

My advice for anybody going the ikea route and wants good prices, as I have bought quite a bit of furniture in Thailand now..... use ikea, but don't buy their high priced items. For example, if you want to buy 4 chairs for your dinner table, don't buy 4 expensive ones, just look at the ones on the cheap end. They seem to hold up as well to me. The price just gets TOTALLY out of whack as you get into the higher ticket items. There are some exceptions to this of course, I think ikeas leather couches are great. I have one and it is holding up brilliantly and one of my favorite pieces of furniture. But, I bet a cheap ikea couch would do as well. And if you want some REALLY good stuff, there are people who sell these handmade teekwood chairs and tables and the quality is just out of this world. Definitely some of the nicest stuff I have seen in Thailand out of ALL the products I have seen here. They will run you say 3 to 5 k baht a chair, but well worth it if you want something nice.

So, I would stay on a strict Ikea and good handmade teakwood dealer diet myself here. There are also a lot of good furniture shows at bitech, which is where I saw the nice teakwood.

Anyway, that is my advice

Edited February 15, 2014 by isawasnake

[CWMcMurray]

All I can say is to each his own... There are many folks who like the IKEA model ... I just don't happen to be one..

For me I outfitted my whole house with furniture from Koncept and SB ... House is about 4 yrs old now and absolutely no issue with anything I bought at Koncept or SB

Also did make a journey through IKEA once and did see the quality of IKEA stuff on display and didn't look to be anything special..

There was more of a selection, so if some one cares about having more choice colors/styles or patterns, then they may like it.

For me .. Could care less about such things, so was more than happy with the selection available at Koncepynand SB

Was also really happy that I dint have to fuss with anything at all... Just pointed to what I wanted, zipped the credit card..

They gave a delivery date for the middle of the next week and everything was moved in and set up while I was at work... Easy peasy...

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[CWMcMurray]

As you can probably tell.. I am not a "shopper" ... I like to go into a store knowing already what I want ... Go directly to the isle it is located and get back out again ..

Would venture that to anyone of a similar disposition... IKEA is a nightmare

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[seancar29]

Completely different, at least in terms of perception by the locals.

If you shop in IKEA in Thailand people assume that you're wealthy, whereas in the West it is considered more an "entry" market in terms of obtaining furnitures...

Items on offer and shop layout is mostly identical.

Well hey, SIZZLER is considered an upmarket restaurant for wealthy people by Thais... You have to see some of them dress up in their Sunday best to go and eat there!

Many Thais realize Ikea is just a big warehouse selling low quality furniture, much like its cafe sells poor food. We go there occasionally, but never to buy furniture - or eat. That would be like going to McDonald's to expect decent food.

Why go there occasionally If it's so abhorrent to eat or buy furniture?

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[seancar29]

Sorry

On my phone and I seem to have connected the wrong quote

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[ThaiSmarterThanYou]

Hello,

Do you know a way to transfer the payment for furnitures to Ikea Thailand ?

Someone can pick up the furniture for me but I would prefer to pay directly without going to the shop ?

Thank you.

[Aladdin]

Before shopping at IKEA, please search internet for “IKEA NAZI” and “IKEA East German political prisoners” I would never set foot in any IKEA shop