CANADA—Tyler Whitt was overjoyed to see the 2016 IKEA catalogue sticking out of his mailbox on Thursday. He made plans to give the extended flyer his undivided attention over the weekend.
“Saturday morning, I sat down with a cup of coffee and the catalogue then settled in for a good read,” said Whitt. But all did not go as expected.
“At first, I thought I was just making my way through the smaller, less interesting items. I was sure the catalogue would pick up,” Whitt said with a sigh. “But on every page, all I saw – was junk.”
IKEA, a store that had provided both joy and furnishings for Whitt in his youth, was now just a disappointment. “The Knopparp mini sofa looked like crap, the Bekant desk appears to have been designed by a five-year-old and you know the Kallax shelving unit won’t survive more than two moves. All the stuff I used to think was so practical and useful just looks cheap now.”
Whitt’s coffee was only half-drunk when he tossed the catalogue aside for the National Post weekend edition. “Can you believe what’s going on with housing prices?” he marveled.