Monday, December 18, 2006

ikea and courts

went to the new ikea in tampines (finally!) today with gabriel..it is as they say "HUGE"! my mission was to buy a computer table for my mum (as well as any other cute stuff that can be used as cheap christmas presents :P)..the place was packed for a weekday..lots of aunties and kids..but interestingly, there were no queues at the cashiers! what we soon realise is despite it's gi-normous physique, the range of products is basically the same as the other ikea in alexandra road..well ok the walkways are wider and the cafe is bigger but for someone looking for a computer table, i wasn't too impressed with what i had to choose from..i ended up buying a very basic one for my mum and a cd case for myself..hey it's ikea, you can't leave without buying anything! and if you were wondering what happened to my infamous obsession with ikea batteries..well, i got my colleague to buy two packs for me the previous week already! :P

after ikea, we went over to the also newly opened courts megastore..i tell you, that place is a market! the design of the store itself was quite a mess..we entered at the first level only to realise that you couldn't go upstairs unless you made a big round back to the main entrance..even then, you have got to start all the way at the third level and make your way down! ok, that was probably a marketing ploy..but the ground floor..products strewn all over the floor, a salesman on the microphone shouting out bargain products, loud music and all the uncles and aunties removing items out of boxes and then simply chucking them aside..like a bladdy wet market! not surprisingly, gabriel and i found an empty dopod box with the handset amiss! i mean, who will suspect when almost everyone (and i mean literally everyone!) is just taking products out of their boxes to inspect..i am sure there are many more empty boxes lying around without their items in them..

two megastores side by side but such a contrast in image..courts with its packed, narrow spaces and haphazard arrangements just oozes of shoddiness..on the other hand, ikea with its wide aisles and tidily organised furnitures reflects class and simplicity..i'm probably biased..afterall, it's ikea, you just don't leave without buying anything!

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