IKEA is increasingly becoming a knick-knack shop

Don't you have to take public transport for a very long time to Lichtenberg? Here in Frankfurt, luckily I can also go down the stairs and straight to the ticket counters. Usually also the other way around. Ticket counter - bargain basement - restaurant.

I cannot understand worse quality in the Metod carcasses, but more so with the fronts and also with Pax. One easily gets the wrong impression about the prices. Last year there were significant price increases due to the stupid unlimited return policy, but viewed over a longer period it looks different. A 100 cm PAX with Nexus doors cost €279.50 in 2001, today it costs €222.

Yes, Ikea Südkreuz is closer, but I work in Lichtenberg. ;) Also, my brother lives around there and I can borrow his car by arrangement... which unfortunately tends to encourage shopping. :D

You can only get directly to the checkout at Südkreuz if you go through the "Wagengang". Of course, that's forbidden and only works at most three minutes before closing time.

Then that is a good option, especially since you have a bit of a walk from Südkreuz.

For me personally, the biggest scandal is that the galant desk series was discontinued and replaced by crude junk. Although "replaced" is hardly the right word here. The so-called "successor" Bekant is no comparison, as the tops are much thinner and the frames are wobbly. There are also no decent desk sizes, and they are not expandable compared to Galant. The only thing is the price, which is somewhat lower. I don’t understand why Ikea is cutting corners exactly there, since there are enough alternatives where I can get junk. But something like Galant, which wasn’t cheap but clearly cheaper than designer office furniture, is unfortunately hard to find anywhere else. It’s a shame that Ikea doesn’t have a highline and lowline series, or something comparable.

The fact that the quality has worsened can also be seen in many other places. For example, with these wooden frames and shelves for the bathroom, which used to be hardwood and are now bamboo (imitation?), and unfortunately look very cheap... I don’t know the prices, but it feels like they are lower.

Best regards Ben

I once watched a documentary where it was claimed that Ikea makes more revenue from all the small items (internally called "satellite articles") than from furniture. It’s not surprising why one floor consists entirely of furniture display and an equally sized floor consists of small furnishing items.

However, you are fundamentally right in your criticism: the selection of system furniture has become smaller and Ikea prefers to use its shelf space for the self-service warehouse more for additional small furniture than for greater flexibility of Pax, Besta, Metod, etc.

Additional cabinet widths would be desirable, especially for PAX, at least a 30cm cabinet carcass for Metod, and even if only with an 80x30 front just for shelves. Besta should again offer the high-quality full extension drawers from Hettich, like the old Inreda had. Different heights of carcasses and fronts should also be offered again for Besta, as listed in the buying guide from the 2010 catalog.

The problem with the system furniture is that for an additional carcass along with a new front size they have to reserve 10 self-service warehouse spaces again to be able to offer it in all front colors.

However, Ikea has realized that they make more daily revenue per meter of shelf space if they offer many more small single pieces of furniture than a wider selection of system furniture. It’s also logical that you sell an armchair in a trendy color more often than a 30x80cm front of the Veddinge GRAY type. I am also convinced that Metod requires less shelf space than was the case with Faktum (there were 50cm sinks, tambour door cabinets, 30cm cabinets, drawers from 30 to 60cm in 10cm increments, 80cm), etc. However, the flexibility with Metod is still very good, even with Faktum there were inflexible compromises (50cm front on 45cm dishwasher).

Anyone planning with Metod has to rearrange somehow and manage it differently. The same goes with Besta or Pax. Still, one gets annoyed that one cannot arrange the furniture as individually as it could actually be possible. I think Ikea does not lose much revenue, only ultimately a few detail lovers buy from a much more expensive and more flexible system kitchen provider.

Ikea simply has a big data construct and can test in one country whether revenue increases when system furniture is reduced and replaced by small furniture, or when furniture is replaced altogether by satellite articles. If it works, they do it in all countries in the next catalog year.