Ikea furniture: falling quality and rising prices

Ikea: prices going up, quality going down

What is happening with Ikea furniture? A look at the LACK range of TV tables illustrates it: the smallest model costs 17 euros; a larger one, 49.99. The question is whether you get what you pay for or whether the Swedish company has gone too far.

The LACK dilemma: engineering or rip-off?

The LACK table is a classic: light, cheap, made of recycled cardboard with a coating. But since the pandemic, prices have climbed without quality keeping pace. Those who defend the model point out that, for 50 euros, it is a marvel of design engineering: minimal weight, enough strength for a regular TV. Critics call it overrated junk and point out that you used to get better value for money.

Environmentalism as a scapegoat

Part of the frustration is directed at environmental regulation: caps attached to bottles, bags that tear, queues to recycle. "Eco-responsibility" is blamed for making products more expensive without any real benefit. However, the debate drifts toward generalizations that contribute little to analyzing the specific piece of furniture.

Alternatives and way out

Against the 50-euro LACK, some advise raising the budget to 100 and buying something decent at El Corte Inglés (Spain's largest department store chain). Others argue that, for normal use, the Ikea table does the job. The consensus: if you want durability, forget thin particleboard; if it's for a rental flat or a spare bedroom, it's fine as is.

The final irony: paying 50 euros for a piece of pressed-cardboard furniture that, if you don't knock it around, lasts a few years. Or spending twice as much on a wooden one your grandchildren will inherit. To each their own poison.