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Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Sunday, November 27, 2011
Top Holiday Gifts You Can Give to Your Parents
Have you been planning a surprise for your parents for the holidays? Why not start with a nice, well thought of gift? Here are just a few suggestions:
Hobby gifts
Do your parents have a beloved hobby? Why not buy them gifts that they will appreciate and actually use? If your father enjoys fishing, for example, update his equipment set with a new fishing rod and if your mom loves scrapbooking, buy her a set of albums with plenty of stickers and tools to use.
Jewelry
Jewelry always makes an excellent holiday gift for your parents. Mothers will appreciate a thoughtful gift of a pair of earrings, a cameo pendant perhaps or a diamond solitaire. For fathers, a watch, a ring or a cuff link will make a memorable keepsake. Or why not present his and hers watches or matching bracelets? With gifts like these, you could even personalize with monograms or a heartfelt engraved message.
Furniture
Look for High-end furniture pieces that either match or complement existing furniture. If you can't find one that matches, look for furniture that can be used as an accent piece. If it enhances the room but doesn't steal too much attention, it can be a great piece for your parents to have. High-end furniture are usually a good choice since they are well-made using excellent quality materials. They also last long and their craftsmanship is outstanding.
Entertainment
A nice LCD TV would do nicely but you could also make a thoughtful gift of a film or music compilation to your parents. Consider the type of film genre or music type they like and give them a greatest hits collection.
His and Hers spa
A nice vacation can go a long way, especially during the holidays. Get your parents a gift certificate to a luxurious spa for a series of well deserved treatments. Massages, facials and whole body treatments can get them refreshed in time for the busy season.
Personal maid service
Make your parents feel pampered this holiday season and get them gift certificates from maid services. This gift will take the burden of everyday chores off their hands and let them enjoy their time to themselves.
Cruise
Want to splurge? Treat your parents to a memorable gift this holiday season and book them for a cruise vacation. Cruises are quite popular as get-away-from-it-all presents and your parents can enjoy plenty of activities and tours along the way. There are local tours and international tours to choose from. Get them a Mediterranean tour or a Caribbean tour or perhaps a more luxurious European tour.
Friday, November 25, 2011
Learning Lessons From the Ikea Success Story
When I first shopped at IKEA to be honest I didn't like it. I didn't understand it, writing down a list of components, hunting for furniture pieces in a huge warehouse - it all seemed too difficult. However IKEA is addictive - you start off buying some of the small cheap knick knacks around the store and soon you find you kitting out whole rooms with IKEA products. Eventually you get the idea of how is all works and are running down aisles getting you chosen legs for a bed, grabbing 38c to go with 27f.
So why is Ikea successful in the difficult retail market?
1) Their staff appears happier.
I know that is a very subjective comment, but many retail store you go to the staff seem unhappy and unwilling to help the customer. Either that or its staffed by teenagers who seem to have trouble buying pants that fit, let alone giving your reasonable retail service. I haven't found this to be the case at IKEA, they seem to employ "adult" employees. I think this is due to their hiring process and ongoing training. I had the opportunity to help spend a half day training IKEA staff in safety in a high threat situation - I don't know of many other retail stores that go to that trouble. They also provide a cheap breakfast not just for their customers but for their staff as well - result - the staff is always at work early - because its cheaper to eat at work than home. Now that's clever management of human resources.
2) They took a basic money saving concept and ran with it
IKEA flat packs everything. Whatever they can't flat pack they stack. The advantages of this is lower transport costs and they say the saving is passed onto the consumer. As a buyer in a small Toyota Corolla carthe advantage is I can buy lot of furniture and still manage to get it home. This has the one disadvantage that you have assemble everything yourself, but its not that hard to do and I kind of enjoy the experience with the satisfaction of "making" something yourself. Space saving just doesn't stop at the store - the IKEA idea is space saving throughout the house - in fact its one of the main selling points of their products - how they can save space around the house.
3) The stores are very well presented.
Not only are the stores HUGE, they are well presented with interior design ideas and concepts for every room in the house. You have a picture right in front of you of how the kitchen will look and the total cost to get your own room laid out that way. I find the stores are clean and follow a logical pattern.
4) The stores are family friendly.
With the family under greater attack than ever before it is nice to come across a retailer going against the trend. Not only do the have a playground for kids, they are also happy for your children to go throughout the store with you. The children's section is huge with great ideas for laying out a children's room, soft toys and even miniature steel cooking set for children. My children jump all over beds and try to load the trolley up with toys. Want a cheap meal - in the middle of their shop they have a family restaurant with CHEAP food. People keep coming back just to get a feed, and its very difficult to walk through the whole store without coming across something you just have to pick up and buy.
5) The are a range of pricing options.
IKEA claims to be very cheap. In truth they have a range of price options. Normally in any range - e.g. bedroom they have a range of goods from very cheap - through to top of the line. I got two cheap but good beds, but I had to be careful in my selection and option choices. This is because most furniture are a combination of packs to make the final product - so your got to be careful with which packs you choose - for example with a bed you can choose basic slats all the way to very expensive slats - what you choose will effect the final total cost of your product.
My only problem with IKEA is that they don't have enough stores!
Monday, November 21, 2011
My 1st time at IKEA
My very first time inside an IKEA store. For more information go to www.ikea.com
Friday, November 18, 2011
How IKEA Has Grown in Leaps and Bounds
IKEA has been growing tremendously and as a result, there are very many people in the US who have gotten jobs and continue to get jobs from the new stores being opened. In total, there are 9,499 employees of IKEA in the United States. Many people express their desire to work for the retail all the time and, as prove of this, 31,000 applications were received in 2007 and only 2,500 people managed to get the jobs. IKEA US is ranked among the top 100 best companies in the world. There are 34 locations of IKEA stores in the US. It comes second to Germany as being the biggest and largest market for IKEA products. The company deals with home furnishing products like kitchenware, decorative products, furniture, bathroom accessories and so many others.
The IKEA us headquarters are found in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania and, it is a subsidiary of IKEA holdings. They are on the front line to ensure that the environment is protected. They were the first company in the US to announce that they will do away with disposable bags. They were following the footsteps of their sister companies in Australia and The United Kingdom which saw the plan implemented. The company saw the opening of the first manufacturing facility in the United States recently. The expansive plant is located in Danville, Virginia and is a pleasant newcomer. It is said that by the end of 2009, it will have 300 workers. In total, the plant used 1 million to put up. The manufacturing company is called Swedwood and it received incentives from the state and local authorities to a tune of up to million.
IKEA US staff are dedicated to providing a good service to the customers. Some people have expressed frustration while shopping for their home furnishings simply because they are stranded in the showroom. Customers are therefore advised to make use of the people in blue and yellow. The uniform of the staff comes mostly in these colors and you cannot miss them. If you are buying furniture that is too large, they will guide you to the right clerk who will make sure that the right product is gotten. If you are not sure of your IKEA US location, you do not have to sweat over this. Go to the IKEA website and, the IKEA location finder will do the job for you. It will certainly show you which is the nearest store to you.
IKEA US has risen up to the occasion to perform its fair share of social corporate responsibility. It has donated money to UNICEF programs for a long time. This was when the deadly tsunami hit parts of Asia causing so much devastation. It also contributed to the earthquake stricken parts of Pakistan. These are just few examples of what IKEA United States has done. It continues to partner with organizations like UNICEF to make life better for the unfortunate. Like all the other IKEA outlets, it has a vision and plans and customers can rest assured that the company will continue to deliver not only quality and low prices but, a good service to the customer.
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