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Friday, May 1, 2009
IKEA Tampa Photo Tour
Posted by Denis Baldwin on Fri, May 1, 2009 at 1:31 AM
On Wednesday I attended an exclusive photo preview of the new IKEA Tampa at 22nd & Adamo. I'm really impressed with this store, and its grand opening May 6 is likely to be a big event.
A few things about this IKEA make it different from many other retails, including other IKEA stores. First, this is the biggest IKEA in Florida. The walking tour, which lasted almost three hours, didn't even cover the guts of the store. We literally danced from section to section and I ended up doing a lot of "walk and snap" photography, just trying to get it all in.
On top of the sheer magnitude of the space, trying to wrap your head around what IKEA is will likely make your head pop. On the surface, it's a retail outlet for inexpensive and trendy housewares, furniture and other fun stuff. The top level features dozens of rooms filled with furniture and accessories to complement each lifestyle. Some are formal, some are fun and some are wacky. There really is something for everyone.
As you make your way downstairs, you're surrounded by every odd and end you could imagine for your kitchen, bath or the rest of your home. The prices are amazing as well. $8 for a wok? $4 for a box of candles? Cooking utensils under $5? Large area rugs under $50? It's truly amazing some of the bargains you will find. The secret, I'm told, is volume. They make and sell millions of pieces of inventory every month.
Thoughout the facility, you find little pencils and pieces of paper to make lists of what you want as you go. It's all stored downstairs for easy retrieval later. This keeps carts on the main floor and the upstairs free of boxes. Speaking of boxes, everything is flat-packed. This means it's easy to store, easy to ship and easy for you to carry home. I looked at the boxes for the dresser and bed I want to buy. They'll fit on the trunk of my Miata, no problem.
Beyond shopping, IKEA is a living community. It's a place to drop your kids off while you shop (Smaland), a cafeteria-style restaurant with lots of choices (all of which were delicious, mind you) and a cult of personality. The people who work here are the You and Me of retail, the hipster who enjoys the brand and works there because it is IKEA. I met a number of them yesterday, and I felt right at home. If you're fearful of young people who are all smiling, you may want to avoid this place.
Even before the store opens, their scratch-n-dent AS-IS section is full. You'll want to be there opening day to snatch up many of these bargains before they're gone.
For the rest of the photos, see my photo set:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/denisbaldwin/sets/72157617424695925/
Denis Baldwin can be seen crashing store openings all over the Tampa Bay Area in his own website, MyTampaLife.com
Comments (2)
Showing 1-2 of 2
Welcome to Tampa IKEA! We are honored and excited about the grand opening of your 37th store - the biggest location in Florida. As I travel pass that enormous blue box, I can feel the energy mounting. It’s like Christmas in May and I guarantee the amount of commerce this retailer will bring will be outstanding. YBOR strap up your boots! So to prepare myself, I pulled over, parked, and stood on the corner to take a minute and think of 5 questions before I walk across the street and become the first person in line to travel through the store’s "one-way" layout, just in case the cameras are rolling. How do you say your name? In most languages, "IKEA" is pronounced something like [i?ke.a], but in English it is generally /a??ki?.?/, similar to the word "idea.” Are all the stores built from the same drawings? The first IKEA store was built in Stockholm and was modeled after the world-famous Guggenheim Museum in New York. The Tampa location will include 49 room settings, 3 model home interiors, 10,000 exclusively-designed items, a supervised children’s play area, and a 350-seat restaurant serving Swedish specialties such as meatballs. What does IKEA MEAN? IKEA is an acronym for Ingvar Kamprad, Elmtaryd, Agunnaryd. Ingvar Kamprad, the founder of IKEA, grew up in Elmtaryd, Agunnaryd. What does IKEA PROVIDE? IKEA is the world's largest furniture manufacturer, selling bathroom, kitchen, home products, and accessories. IKEA is the pioneer of the “flat-pack” design furniture at affordable prices. How Big Is IKEA? IKEA is global, with 296 stores in 36 countries. In all, IKEA has 1,600 suppliers in 55 countries. http://twitter.com/IKEATampa See you on May 6th @ 9AM Skyline Limousine Services & Fleet Management 1228 S. Howard Avenue Suite 1 Tampa, FL 33606T 813.777.2685 F 813.259.0264 Toll-Free 866.777.1211 skyline@skyline-limo.com www.skyline-limo.com
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Welcome to Tampa IKEA! We are honored and excited about the grand opening of your 37th store - the biggest location in Florida. As I travel pass that enormous blue box, I can feel the energy mounting. It’s like Christmas in May and I guarantee the amount of commerce this retailer will bring will be outstanding. YBOR strap up your boots! So to prepare myself, I pulled over, parked, and stood on the corner to take a minute and think of 5 questions before I walk across the street and become the first person in line to travel through the store’s "one-way" layout, just in case the cameras are rolling. How do you say your name? In most languages, "IKEA" is pronounced something like [i?ke.a], but in English it is generally /a??ki?.?/, similar to the word "idea.” Are all the stores built from the same drawings? The first IKEA store was built in Stockholm and was modeled after the world-famous Guggenheim Museum in New York. The Tampa location will include 49 room settings, 3 model home interiors, 10,000 exclusively-designed items, a supervised children’s play area, and a 350-seat restaurant serving Swedish specialties such as meatballs. What does IKEA MEAN? IKEA is an acronym for Ingvar Kamprad, Elmtaryd, Agunnaryd. Ingvar Kamprad, the founder of IKEA, grew up in Elmtaryd, Agunnaryd. What does IKEA PROVIDE? IKEA is the world's largest furniture manufacturer, selling bathroom, kitchen, home products, and accessories. IKEA is the pioneer of the “flat-pack” design furniture at affordable prices. How Big Is IKEA? IKEA is global, with 296 stores in 36 countries. In all, IKEA has 1,600 suppliers in 55 countries. http://twitter.com/IKEATampa See you on May 6th @ 9AM Skyline Limousine Services & Fleet Management 1228 S. Howard Avenue Suite 1 Tampa, FL 33606T 813.777.2685 F 813.259.0264 Toll-Free 866.777.1211 skyline@skyline-limo.com http://www.skyline-limo.com/ Posted by Skyline Limousine at 7:29 PM 1 comments Labels: adamo, brandon, car service, clearwater, GPS, hummer limo, ikea, IKEA TAMPA, limos, lutz, mco, miami, orlando, srq, tampa, tampa ikea, tpa, ybor
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