IKEA — Local services in New Haven

To Whom It May Concern,

I am writing to express my profound dissatisfaction with the service I received at your store, specifically regarding the cashier named Caleyah who worked at Register 6. Her conduct was incredibly rude and unacceptable. Throughout my entire checkout process, Caleyah did not say a single word to me, and to clarify, IT WAS NOT A SELF-CHECKOUT.

As a handicapped person, I required assistance and asked her about using my Family card. Not only did she ignore my question, but she also refused to make eye contact. When the printer produced the receipt, she simply stared at me, doing nothing. I had to reach over to her side of the counter to retrieve the receipt myself. Caleyah’s complete lack of communication and assistance during the checkout was appalling. IT WAS NOT A SELF-CHECKOUT. I am a handicapped person! If Caleyah was having a bad day, it is unacceptable to take it out on customers. She should consider taking a day off if needed, but her behavior was utterly unprofessional. We, the customers, pay her salary and deserve respectful and helpful service.

Additionally, your store is severely understaffed, which further exacerbates the problem. Finding assistance in the store feels like walking "5 miles" through a maze. In the lighting department, I had to wait for a passing clerk from another section who lacked knowledge about lighting fixtures, leading to incorrect purchases and subsequent returns. This lack of knowledgeable staff not only wastes time and resources but also contradicts IKEA’s claim of being environmentally friendly. Cutting costs by reducing staff might save on maternity leaves, pensions, and health insurances, but the preventable returns and exchanges caused by inadequate staffing and training are costly to our planet and community.

Furthermore, at the food court, I inquired about the ingredients in the meatballs, specifically if they contained bread crumbs or carbs. The clerk told me to scan a QR code and look up the information online. With six other hungry customers behind me, this suggestion was not only impractical but also frustrating. Your staff should be knowledgeable about the food they serve and able to provide immediate answers.

My shopping experience at your store has been consistently negative. The clerks are rude, help is nonexistent, returns and exchanges are frequent, customer service is unresponsive, and problems remain unresolved. This pattern of poor service is unacceptable.

I hope this feedback prompts immediate action to improve your store’s customer service and staffing...

I usually have a great experience at ikea, and I come here a lot. But managers, if you see this, please fix this situation:

I had a few items on my eye for a while but they weren’t available for in store pickup, and delivery was extremely expensive. So when I was at the store, I waited a very long time to place the order with an employee. They gave me a slip and I gave it to the cashier to purchase the items, which were very expensive. Keep in mind, the items are held for 24 hours. I went to the other side of the store for item pick-up, and it said my items would be ready in 5 minutes. So I waited. And waited. After 30 minutes, I asked an employee, and they were extremely unhelpful. They couldn’t give me a straight answer as to why EVERYONE was getting their order before mine, despite the fact that mine was due 30 minutes ago. THEN, that employee just completely disappears, and no one helping item pickup is there to help a growing line of customers for the next 30 minutes. We are now 1 hour into waiting for my items that were promised to be ready very quickly. No one has any idea what the hold up is. That’s when an employee comes out and I’m asking what the situation is, and this person is new so they didn’t have any idea how to help me. No worries there, that’s not their fault. But the kicker is that the item is held for 24 hours and I now had to drive an hour home, and I’m probably going to show up tomorrow, and my item still won’t be available, and the 24 hours will have past. What a mess. The worst part here was the customer service, given I had just spent almost a thousand dollars. I love ikea and will gladly give them my money, but only for quality products and customer service. Ikea managers, look to places like the apple store and train your employees accordingly. My cashier was AMAZING, but some of the people in the returns and pickup area were like deers in the headlights - completely clueless. It would have been at least nice for an employee to tell me “listen, this is exactly what’s going on, here’s my recommendation, why don’t you leave and come back tomorrow.” Instead, I wasted almost 1 and a half hours and I didn’t even get my items. They told me 1 and a half hours in that I should just go home. 👎 do...

Procedures are flawed and customer service is some of the worst I have ever dealt with. I placed a $906 order online the morning of 8/1, to avoid the outrageous delivery fee of $90 from New Haven to Guilford of 7 pcs, I decided to do pick-up (even though it would require both of our vehicles), choosing this option it gave me a window to pick-up. I chose 6-7pm 8/2 (keep in mind, I was given multiple options, and this was the latest day and time to pick-up). Everything was available and in stock. Never in my dreams would I think, I would have to go back and check on "status" of order being pulled if I was provided a window to come and pick-up (should have been pulled and ready for that slotted window I was provided to pick-up). We take 2 cars, our little baby, drive 45mins because of the damn highway paving, to come and find out the order isn't ready (which took about another 30mins to figure out). Didn't receive a phone call or an email stating that it's not ready and to not come. I am told my two options are, come back tomorrow or cancel and wait for your 7-14 day refund and then reorder to get delivery free of charge. Nothing convenient to the customer and the fact that I was given a window and we were right there. I hop on a chat the next day to try and figure it out, IKEA cannot grasp the concept of how their process is flawed and miss leading. After 30 mins, it gets disconnected and another rep comes on, asks how they can help. I tell them to read the last 30 mins of convo I was just having. They then come back and tell me there are items on back order now, you can wait for them to be replenished or cancel and be refunded. IKEA- You are a joke. Fix your system because its broken and your wasting people's...