So let me just “vent” for a quick second…
I’m looking to buy some new furniture for my back porch. And everyone has been talking about the new WAYFAIR retail store in Wilmette. So I drove up tonight after work. Very clean. Well displayed. Large store… not many people? Okay, maybe it’s just a Thursday night thing?

So I went to the “Outdoor Furniture” section to find my options. Of course I deliberated over it… trying to picture some furniture settings & combinations in my head. I was even texting photos to a friend for her input at the same time. I finally landed on a bistro table, two matching chairs, and two very fun & very orange comfy side chairs.

So then the real question… now what do I do? There are no shelves of products. There are no instructions. You apparently need to wait to track down a Customer Service person… which there weren’t many of those there either?! I finally found a guy and told him what I wanted to purchase… for more money than I wanted to spend, but I was willing because I think it would look cool back there on my porch. Only to find out that they don’t have any inventory in the store… he would order it for me, ship it and I would receive the pieces in a week or so. Wait… what?! So no difference really from shopping the much larger selection from WAYFAIR online?!

He said the only thing they stock there is basically lamps & small accessories. Everything else you need to order & ship. Doesn’t sound like much of a RETAIL store to me?! I “assumed” it would be more like IKEA where you see the displays, and then go out to the warehouse area to find the parts & pieces you want to buy & take home. Nope!!!

So imagine my surprise when I was trying to navigate my way back to the exit only to find this HUGE cashier check-out area… with no one in any of those lines!!! Because they apparently have nothing to sell there?!!! Huge aisle, huge check-out areas, a couple employees doing nothing… and NO customers trying to buy the “nothing: they sell there?!

Thanks for listening… not a fan…

I feel better now … and I still have no furniture on my back porch!