Ouch!

I think I’ve cracked my Ikea conundrum. As a reminder, it’s when you can apparently create a product to your required spec using the design tool on their web site but when you come to order it you find that certain items are unavailable either for collection, in store or from a ‘point relais’, or for delivery. If not, why are they still being offered for sale on their web site, you might ask?

Well, it appears that Ikea are playing a special game without telling anyone. If you check availability more closely you find that you can check out other stores to see if they have the item(s) you need. When I did so I found that just one in the whole of the western sector of France, possibly in the whole of France outside Paris did have. And that’s in Nantes, a 5 hour, 250 mile (400 km) drive away.

I remember that when I was helping my friend Val with her Ikea kitchen down in the Languedoc we had a similar problem, having to go to Toulouse for everything, not quite as far as from my house to Nantes but far enough. But there’s a catch. The absolutely key item for my project not available except at Nantes is the 50 cm wide mirror fronted door, of which I need ten, five per bedroom. However, if I go through the process of placing the total order for collection from the Nantes store I find that there they are missing the 50 cm wide carcass, of which I require two, again one for each bedroom.

First you ask yourself how come a global organisation like Ikea can be in such a ridiculous pickle as far as stock control is concerned. Then you have to try to work out how to get around the problem as there’s no way that you can influence them to solve it for you. Leroy Merlin would order the missing item(s) into their local store for you and let you know when they’re available to pick up but from the evidence available I think it would be futile to think that Ikea might do the same. So what do do?

It looks as though the way to go is to knock the 50 cm wide carcasses off the order placed on Nantes and drive there to pick up everything else that’s available. I think I can then place a separate order on the Bordeaux store for the 50 cm carcasses for collection at a ‘point relais’, the closest being at Trelissac near Brico Depot. For that I’d have to pay an extra delivery charge of 29€, which is annoying, but at least I’d then have what I need to complete bedrooms one and two which would otherwise be at a standstill 😐

Alternatively it appears that I could order everything from Bordeaux except the mirror doors for pick-up from Trelissac for a delivery charge of 29€ and then just drive to Nantes for the doors. This would be a much better option as I’d only have to transport the bulk of the goods over a much shorter distance.