When Ikea opened a store in Canton, Mi. last summer, my oldest daughter was a winner in a contest to get admission on a preview day before the store actually opened. What a disaster. The only thing worse I’ve experienced was Easter Sunday at Disney world (maybe you can tell, I don’t enjoy crowds).

Don’t get me wrong, I mostly like the store, and we actually remodeled our kitchen using their cabinets and accessories, which turned out great. The hype they build up for the opening of these stores is just over the top, and if you wait a couple of weeks to let it die down, you will have a much more pleasant experience. I also recommend going on a weekday if at all possible.

I agree with Desertdog about the layout. When making return trips during our kitchen remodel, I hated having to meander through the whole store to get to the department I wanted…