How to shop productively at IKEA
A story in six parts!🛒
How about some music while you read the article? Connect your headphones, set the volume to 40% (no cheating 🔫), and enjoy the song in the background while you read. I’ll try to make this a 4-minute read. Yeah, vv extra, I know.
PS: This is experimental and may or may not be present in the future.
Shopping at IKEA is surreal. I remember the first time visiting the IKEA Nagasandra Bangalore store and being mesmerized by the attention to detail and the sophisticated shopping experience. Having said that, it’s easy to splurge on things you don’t necessarily need when you’re at IKEA. Heck, I bought 3 unplanned products during this visit and it’s really hard to resist the temptation when you see a shiny thing and anticipate the idea of it making your life a tiny bit better.
With that in mind, I had to come up with a strategy to shop at IKEA without impulse buying. Before you come to the comments saying “You can always order online 😏”, hear me out. I’m aware. While you can order online and pay the ₹99 delivery fee, there’s something about the IKEA shopping experience that makes me go back and spend hours there.
That said, here’s how I try to mindfully shop at IKEA. It goes without saying that my approach won’t work for everyone and requires doing a bit of homework. Disclaimers aside, let’s get to it!
Part 1: Have a shopping list 📝
Who would’ve thought, right?
It doesn’t take a genius to guess that having a list makes any shopping experience convenient. Growing up, I remember scribbling shopping lists on faded brown papers from my ruled notebook as mom dictated them and rushing to the friendly1 neighborhood grocery store. In 2023, I don’t have to tell you that a lot of people don’t use physical shopping lists. That ship has sailed, for most of us.
Assuming you have adopted note-taking and to-do list apps (or the blocked ex’s WhatsApp chat, you do you) to keep track of things, you probably have a digital space to dump your shopping list. Well, dump it. Congrats, you have completed the first (and the hardest) part. 🎉
Part 2: Find product locations from the online store 👀
Look up all the products from your list on the IKEA app (or web) and find their section location at your nearest IKEA store. I prefer taking screenshots of the location and pasting them to my notes app for quick reference, but that’s optional.
Also optional: You could start using the IKEA names in brackets if you need. Since I have the memory of a goldfish, I prefer keeping things simple.
Note: If you’re planning to buy online, you can check out here and call it a day.
Part 3: Get the store plan sheet
Now that you know the location of the products, you should grab a store overview pamphlet. Typically placed at the entrance, this pamphlet gives you one key piece of info — the number mapped to the section’s location.
For instance, if you’re planning to buy something from the home organization section, you’ll know from the pamphlet that it is the 15th department. This way, you can plan your route and avoid back-and-forth trips with a trolley.
Pro tip: Consider carrying a blue/black ball pen to scribble/circle on the pamphlet. IKEA offers small pencils that looks as if a kid has bitten all the paint out of it, but it’s not practical.
How am I supposed to use a pencil on a paper with a laminated finish? This design decision feels way out of place and not quite IKEA-esque.
Part 4: Sort the shopping list by section numbers
With these two data points at hand, all you have to do is sort the shopping list in ascending order and pick the products as you go. Easy!
Here’s an image for reference:
Wait, did the music just stop? Fret not, I’ve got you covered. Here’s another track to keep the party going (screams DeeeeeJayyyyy Subinnnnnn) [Hey, at least I didn’t say, it’s your boyyyy Subinnnnnn2]. Okay, I’ll stop. 🙊
Part 5: Delegate item finding to staff
Pro tip: If you’re planning to visit IKEA, it’d be a good idea to avoid wearing yellow. It’s the dress code of the staff and you don’t want random people asking you directions for things, do you?
If you’re a people manager, an aspiring one, or a productive person in general, you probably know the power of delegation. Delegation takes tasks off your plate and frees up time for doing something worthwhile. Putting delegation to the IKEA shopping context, you could ask the staff for assistance in finding items on your list.
Tell them the IKEA name of the product (found in the app and they usually recognize it) and chances are, they will direct you to the exact spot. This approach saves me a lot of time and helps me cherry-pick stuff I need.
With that said, if you love the idea of finding things yourself, don’t let me stop you. By all means, take your sweet time to track each product on your list down and grab them. You got this! 🤝
Part 6: Pray you don’t get distracted 🫠
At this point, you have everything you need for a productive IKEA shopping session. But I know things are not that straightforward. After all, we are only human and temptations exist. As long as you have a rational or (relatively reasonable) emotional reasoning for your purchase decision, I’d say go for it. Just don’t max your credit card hehe. Or do, c'est la vie!
Treat Corner 🌟
Did you know there is a system to represent places in three words? Well, I didn’t, until recently. Enter what3words, a cool (yet simple) way to express locations.
As the company states:
We divided the world into 3 metre squares and gave each square a unique combination of three words. It’s the easiest way to find and share exact locations.
It’s like Morse code, without the complexity of Morse code. I hope this goes mainstream in the foreseeable future. Imagine saying something along the lines of “bhaiya, pint.liberty.nylon se right aao (brother, please turn right from pint.liberty.nylon)” when you’re getting food delivered. 😂
Anyway, greetings from feuds.newer.ridge .... - - .--. ... ---... -..-. -..-. .-. -... .-.-.- --. -.-- -..-. ...-- ----. .-.. . -.--
Since it’s been a while, this edition includes both Treat Corner and Rant Box hehe
Rant Box 😤
Ever purchased something at an unbelievable price and thought you scored an amazing deal, only to realize there was a big catch all along? Well, that’s what I’m going through right now. During our recent trip to Ooty, we bought a red wine bottle for roughly 500 bucks!
Alas, my excitement was short-lived as I read the fine print on my way back. As it turns out, it is a “de-alcoholized” wine. Whaaat? That was the day I realized such a thing even exists. You know what, I would forgive the lack of alcohol. What I won’t forgive is the choice of the bottle cap.
It comes with a generic plastic Coke bottle-like red cap and opens anticlockwise! Like, who even does that? Instant turnoff, ughhh! 🫡 I understand it’s convenient, but they should adhere to standard industry design guidelines, no?
PS: If you want to take a look at the bottle cap, drop me an email or reach out on Instagram (If you decide to text on Instagram, please don't say just hello in chat).
As I’m writing this, I’m sipping sophisticated grape juice off a fancy red wine glass.🥲
Not gonna lie, it sorta tastes nice though. Anyway, here’s to hoping the next red wine doesn’t betray me. And dear reader, always read the fine print.
Until next time,
Hearts if you liked it, subs if you loved it!
Happy shopping,
Subin
Not that friendly, but that’s a story for another day!
For my global audience, (yes, I have a couple of international readers and I appreciate y’all 🥹), this is a reference to Indian pop rapper Badshah. That’s how he watervoicemarks his songs.