HEARD IT THROUGH THE GRIPEVINE: OUR NEW ABNORMAL
IKEA at MOA Square turned a year old a couple of months ago, and as Issa (Litton) was refurbishing the bedroom of her two daughters, I joined them at IKEA last week. If you thought that the initial furor over the global home store finally opening here in Manila had dissipated, think again. For whatever reasons, the lines of people clamoring to enter the two floors and over 65,000 square meters of furniture display, and of Swedish food and refreshments, has not abated. This was only my third time to visit IKEA Pasay City, and I’ll keep steady my salute to what they’ve created, in what is reported to be the world’s biggest IKEA location.
It’s practically a domestic tourist destination, a Swedish version of our Nayong Pilipino, a maze of a floor area – hence my title, and a choice family outing/date place, that’s got to be seen to be believed. I stake a claim that this kind of two-thumbs up devotion, and hallowed status, has not been afforded many IKEA locations across the globe, and it’s a uniquely Filipino reaction to the brand, and to its presence here. As to how long this will last, only time will tell.
THE IKEA at MOA Square.
But for now, it’s a phenomenon that blurs socio-economic distinctions, that appeals to all ages, and I would guess, has even surprised the Swedish principals. The display floor with vignettes of interior set-ups is a veritable maze, and has been smartly laid out so that it’s like taking a dream journey of what the different rooms and areas of your home could look like. Literally, it’ll take you over an hour just to traverse this floor if you’ll stop to admire and check out the modules.
The store policy of making the displays experiential, equates to loads of children, and the elderly, using the beds and couches as stations of rest and recreation! On the day we visited, there were teenagers lying on the couches and playing games on their mobile devices – and they looked like they were ready to just occupy these couches until closing time. A good number of senior citizens were egging their companions to just leave them, look around, and come back for them when ready to leave. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if you told me these seniors had been there for days – that’s how relaxed and at home they looked.
THE PERPETUAL lines of IKEA shoppers at the check-out lanes.
We were there for over two hours, and by the 90-minute mark, I was joking about how it felt like we were in a prison, and please point out the short-cuts, so we could get out of the store. The discovery that all the merchandise is duplicated in the Market Hall 2nd floor, but without the displays, had me feeling I had been tricked. But yes, for most of the people there, I know that the maze of modules and the fact that you can convert these vignettes into places of rest, were the point of the whole “IKEA excursion” – not to mention the meatballs and salmon that one could partake of in the restaurants and eating places that dot the humongous floor areas.
As one who likes to throw in my two cents worth of social observation and commentary, I wanted to analyze why this sustained enthusiasm for IKEA. Now I know that home improvement was one of the big obsessions of the Filipino during the pandemic, and online shopping for items related to the home went through the roof. So I’d postulate that heading to IKEA, just like revenge travel, shopping, and partying, is the transitioning of this obsession in a post-pandemic world. It’s finally tactile, experiential, and part and parcel of having a family outing, or a daytime date.
And as it’s virtually like a mall within a mall, the IKEA experience is one that ticks so many boxes. The Mom/wife is happy because the family is together, the dad can be provider, and at the same time, look out for his own home improvement interests (I spied a gaming table console that works on hydraulics), while the children get the chance to spruce up their own rooms. It’s cool and comfortable while you’re engaged in the IKEA marathon, and the F&B choices are unique to IKEA, so one can add ‘dining treat’ to the itinerary.
TITO BALL, and how the Swedish meatballs have become the rage.
In Europe and the USA, IKEA is perceived as an entry-level brand when setting up your first home, or furnishing your temporary digs. Students at uni, first jobbers, and starter families are the primary customer base of IKEA in these markets. Here, thanks to its effective global marketing and branding, that classification doesn’t really exist. Here, the novelty of the display, the convenience of how what you like and choose can be brought home or delivered in days, are the attractions. The return policy is also seen as unique for this market.
So I’ll tip my hat to IKEA and how it’s evolved into a retail giant here. It is a Swedish amusement… no, a-maze-ment, park. And you can’t argue with all the happy faces.