Early-bird shoppers crazy for Ikea opening
Thousands of shoppers saw their dreams realized when Ikea finally opened its doors in Dartmouth on Wednesday morning.
Many of them had overnighted to be among the first in line to behold the two-level, 330,000-square-foot shopping mecca.
Megan Hodges, her fourmonth-old son Hollis and mother Joanne Bishop found their place in line at about 9 p.m. Tuesday evening, and stayed there till the doors opened.
She got a $50 gift certificate for her efforts and little Hollis didn’t seem to mind at all.
In fact, he slept through all the hoopla.
“Just the camping was great, the card games, seeing all the live tweets of people in line,” said Bishop.
“People were parading by all night, filming us in line, taking pictures of everyone in line and we were like: ‘We’re up too, come and join us!’ ”
Once inside, Hodges and her family got a chance to see it all for themselves, the 50 rooms, modelling everything from beds and blankets to sofas and dining sets. It was all at their fingertips: 10,000 or so ready-to-assemble
pieces of furniture, along appliances and home accessories.
For the second time in four decades (Ikea first opened here in 1975 and closed again in 1988, citing low sales), the Swedish-based company has extended its franchise
into Atlantic Canada.
Sweden native Anna WahlinStern was among the throng of thrilled shoppers. But she was aiming mostly for the food.
“I’ve been in Halifax for three years, so it’s like a piece of home for me,” said Wahlin-Stern. “Ikea is the only place I can get my milk chocolate, salt licorice and pickled herring.
“We’re all proud of Ikea back home. It even smells like the Ikeas back home. The styles, the white colours are very typical of Scandinavia.”
Ian Goodwin and Carrie Burgess arrived Wednesday ready to do business.
In less than an hour, their shopping cart was full.
“You get a really good product for a really good price and we just love the experience, the atmosphere,” said Ian.
“We love that you can try things out yourself and it’s a positive social experience.” Carrie agreed.
“Anyone can come in here and find something they absolutely love that’s going to make their home fabulous, and it’s affordable,” she said.
“We bought this seven-piece pot set for 30 bucks and this lamp, it’s super stylish and it’s only $8.99. How can you go wrong with that?”