[snapplez]

many people in the forums and site have provided great tips about selecting, building, designing and installing ikea kitchen cabinets – thank you all!

my particular interest is with placing the order – how exactly does this work? i’ve seen comments that suggest this process is long and extremely prone to error. what should we expect when placing an order?

questions:
1. is an appointment needed/recommended/necessary/possible to talk to the kitchen specialists?
2. does bringing in the “ikea kitchen planner” (downloadable designer) information help?
3. what documents/data should one bring to the order session?
4. how long does the ordering process last?
5. how long does it take before a cabinet order is ready for deliver or pickup?

we are planning on installing ikea cabinets in our new home. fortunately, the nearest ikea is only 10 minutes away! unfortunately, it happens to be the newest ikea in frisco, tx (dallas) which opens in one week.

i fully expect absolute chaos will reign for weeks after the opening (people started lining up 3 days ago – nine days before the store opens). so the final question:

6. what strategies do you have for ordering ikea kitchen cabinets during the first few days of opening?

[Lisa]

1. There are no appointments. It's first come first served in most IKEAS.

2. Bring your plan printed in all three options (list form, 3D and as the flat image) A good IKD will look over your plan and indicate areas where you might have door bashing, or other potential trouble spots.

3. see #2. Also, if you know you aren't going to need "x" interior fitting or you know you want to alter the standard package, make a note of that.

4. It takes a long time and it is annoying. There is no way around it. Well, there is one. If you are a brave person, and since you live 10 minutes from the store, I suggest getting a fax number for the kitchen department. You will need to write clear notes if you want non standard set-ups.

5. Each IKEA is said to have 6 Take home Today kitchens - you may be lucky. IKEA Woodbridge, however, takes 7-10 days to process a fax order (how can that be???!!!)

6. See #4. Get the kitchen department's fax number.

[GardenOfDarwin]

If I'm correct, someone managed to already place their order through that store, before it even opened! She called and got an associate who took care of her order over the phone--not a usualoccurence, but stranger things have happened. Lisa is right, though...the ordering process is often a confusing and annoying one. It often depends on the associate you get to help you, the door style you choose and the size/complexity of your order.

But first I have to ask....what door style are you going with? (we're a little nosy around here! ). You might find out if your style will be one of the Take Home Today styles--that will make it infinitely more likely that you'll get what you want. I had a very small order for my breakfast room--2 base cabinets and 3 wall cabinets and I took home all but the faux drawer fronts for the sink base and the 12" x 39" doors for 2 ofthe 3 wall cabs. Nothing that kept us from going forward with installation.

Absolutely you should bring your planner information. Bring your catalog with items you want to pick up while in store circled and highlighted (knobs, shelf liner, drawer dividers, etc.), a list of questions (if you haven't gotten answers here, which is unlikely but within the realm of possibility!), pictures of other finished IKEA kitchens that are your inspiration or just have cool ideas, and specs for any modifications you think you might try to take on.

Folks have indicated orders for an entire kitchen can take several hours up to a full day-- check the Lessons Learned page over on the Fansite--there's a very good write-up about draft orders that you should take a look at. Most orders are ready for delivery or pickup within 7-10 days at my store, but it also depends on backorders, crazy new store opening stuff, etc. Strategies....hmmm.....comfortable shoes, water, caffeine, patience, no children, a book to read....a sense of humor? Expecting chaos is a good start.

Thanks for joining us! Look forward to hearing more about your plans...

Susan

[snapplez]

thank you for the kind welcome. i’ve actually had the pleasure of installing ikea kitchens before so i am experienced in that aspect (we used to live in los angles and had two ikeas to pick from). i’ve ordered non-kitchen furniture and had no problems there.

normally, i wouldn’t be concerned – but it seems people get incredibly excited about ikea. in this case there seems to be some serious pent-up demand for ikea products in the dallas/fortworth/north texas area (see link below). i am not sure what to expect while trying to obtain kitchen components in this crazy atmosphere.

the quest may prove to be futile if there are hundreds of people trying to order kitchens during the first few weeks. we don’t have the luxury of time and need the major components asap!

fortunately, very detailed plans have been drawn up so we will be prepared to order the items using a parts list. i still want a “expert” to review the plans to make sure nothing has been forgotten.

our top choice for door style is currently adel – medium brown. it seems to be a popular choice in this community. the final decision can’t really be made until we’ve seen the actual doors in person.

i also wonder what level of training the ikea staff will have. there is no other area store to draw experienced personnel from.

links:
http://www.dallasnews.com/s/dws/dn/l....1710608b.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3618190.stm

[jenb]

I am also planning on ordering from that store (Frisco) soon after it opens, although I live nowhere as near as you (about 30-40 min. away)

GardenOfDarwin, who has managed to order already?? I'd love to know. I remember someone managed to order early from the Atlanta store, but hadn't heard even a whisper about doing that in Dallas.

I actually called up there last week to try to ask questions, but was thwarted by the operator. I might just have to try again. I was also going to suggest to them that they might need some practice clients before they open, and of course that they should practice on me :-)

Snapplez, if you do brave the new IKEA and manage to get your order in, please update us here on how it goes. I'm planning on making a trip up there sometime in the first week that it's open, but will probably wait until my kids are back at preschool to go up and place the kitchen order.

[GardenOfDarwin]

hmmmm...maybe it was the Atlanta store...??? Sorry to mislead! I remembered it was one of the stores opening this summer, but I guess not enough of the details. Oops! jenb, I sure hope you're successful in getting through and ordering ahead. Seems like our forum members who are so diligent in doing their homework ahead of time should get some perks!

Susan

[Tigratrus]

Just a quick addendum: If you bring a catalog with items highlighted do yourself a favor (assuming you don't do this already!) and put sticky flags on the pages so you don't have to thumb through the pages to FIND the highlighted items... Much faster.

[snapplez]

tomorrow ikea is having a friends and family day at the new store in frisco, tx.

does anyone know about these type of events?

i wonder how strict they are...

[jenb]

No problem Garden, I was hoping I'd just been asleep at the wheel and missed some post from someone about early ordering in Dallas, but oh well :-)

I'm not sure why I'm so interested in trying to order early anyway, it's not as if my plans are anywhere near ready.

Snapplez, I have no idea how it'll work at IKEA, but I can say that when Central Market opened in Dallas they had a "friends and family" of Children's Hospital event before the grand opening and my husband and I found about it (because we have a relative who works at Children's). We just showed up and walked right in the door. No one asked us anything.

I take it IKEA's event is friends and family of IKEA employees? How did you hear about it?

[snapplez]

they mentioned it on the radio this morning because they gave one lucky caller a pass to the friends and family event and 15% off everything they purchased.

maybe it wasn't such a good idea for ikea to publicize this "private" event. i don't know how they could possibly secure all entrances. perhaps they would block someone from actually paying?

i think we are going to try the "central market" technique tomorrow. naturally i will be posting any updates here...