After Navi Mumbai and Hyderabad, IKEA opened its third store in Bengaluru. Touted as the largest IKEA store in India, the furniture giant opened its doors to the citizens of Bengaluru on June 22.
It was our honour to welcome the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Karnataka, Shri Basavaraj Bommai, Murugesh R Nirani, Minister for Large and Medium-scale Industries, Govt of Karnataka, and his Excellency, Klas Molin, Hon’ble Swedish Ambassador to India, for the opening. pic.twitter.com/NdyMRpzfJE
— IKEAIndia (@IKEAIndia) June 22, 2022
Ever since the furniture giant opened its store at Nagasandra, Bengaluru residents cannot keep calm. And in case you think, this is an exaggeration, it is NOT. IKEA took to their Twitter and notified that the “current wait time at Nagasandra store is 3 hours”. Yes, three whole hours.
Bengaluru, we are overwhelmed by your response❣️ Current wait time at Nagasandra store is 3 hours. Please plan accordingly or shop online. For latest wait time updates, visit: https://t.co/XF0WzAZPFE
— IKEAIndia (@IKEAIndia) June 25, 2022
People shared pictures and videos of the high footfall at the store. The weekend also contributed heavily to the crowd. Some people had to return without even entering the store owing to the footfall. As people shared more visuals from the store, netizens coped with it in the best way they know of – memes.
So much so that IKEA also started trending on Twitter. Some even compared it to waiting for darshan at a pilgrimage site. While others stated the things one can do in three hours.
Crowds at the IKEA store in Bangalore today. Looks like Tirupati finally has some competition 😝 pic.twitter.com/fQiS4e87rA
— Suyog Gaidhani (@suyogg) June 25, 2022
IKEA store opened…
— Bengaluru Betala (@gururaj_mj) June 26, 2022
People: pic.twitter.com/GlcNNZuKTv
IKEA Darshan waiting time 3-4 hours.
— Dr. Vijay (@Helth_z_Wealth) June 25, 2022
Haven't gone there, got it from a friend. pic.twitter.com/avS51NDC6z
IKEA store opens in Bangalore
— Hemant (@Sportscasmm) June 26, 2022
People: pic.twitter.com/Hx29OE2Ehn
It’s not MLAs queuing in Maharashtra to form government,
— Harsh Goenka (@hvgoenka) June 26, 2022
It’s not an immigration queue to enter our country,
It’s not a vaccination queue to avoid Covid wave,
It’s not pilgrims queueing in Tirupati for darshan,
It’s the opening of IKEA store in Bangalore!
pic.twitter.com/Qqnd0p9n8v
People can wait outside IKEA Bengaluru for 3 hours, but won’t stand for 5 minutes in Bank’s queue 🤷🏻♂️
— Newton Bank Kumar (@idesibanda) June 26, 2022
Folks, IKEA will there for a while. And they will never run out of meatballs. https://t.co/6Gvcm6nVwT
— Kaveri 🇮🇳 (@ikaveri) June 26, 2022
Me entering Nagasandra metro station after shopping from IKEA pic.twitter.com/OAyWqVh3px
— JT Meme Store (@kaapi_kudka) June 24, 2022
Meanwhile Bengalureans in IKEA. pic.twitter.com/6uCndGLLiW
— yaarivanu_unknownu (@memesmaadonu) June 26, 2022
Remember that Nescafe ad? The stadium filled with people that guy has met over his lifetime? That happened to me at IKEA yesterday.
— Ashutosh Rao (@GoldBlood242) June 26, 2022
Applause to the city’s people who suddenly didn’t feel the need to furnish their homes and avoided visiting IKEA.
— Hamsa (@that_ambivert) June 26, 2022
Crowd waiting to enter new IKEA store in Bangalore, India. Hopefully, not for meat balls! pic.twitter.com/bZSoiUPFjL
— Ashok Swain (@ashoswai) June 25, 2022
POV: You visited the IKEA store in Bangalore. pic.twitter.com/y50JHDKynu
— AIl India Memes (@allindiamemes) June 26, 2022
Places you can go in three hours from Bengaluru.
— Pareekh Jain (@pareekhjain) June 26, 2022
Mysore
Chikmagalur
Hassan
Shivanasamudra Falls
Now IKEA Store also#EIIRHumor #Bengaluru #IKEA pic.twitter.com/FK0eLOEOTb
Perhaps, the biggest footfall nagasandra metro station has ever seen in its lifetime has been seen today 😄 courtesy of ikea #ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು #ikeablr #ikea pic.twitter.com/Q27sQG5x0G
— Prasanna | ಪ್ರಸನ್ನ (@terminalfix) June 25, 2022
Family waiting since 4 hours outside IKEA Bangalore pic.twitter.com/4tgUXpV28N
— Godman Chikna (@Madan_Chikna) June 26, 2022
For a city that is perpetually stuck in traffic jams, this definitely does not come across as a surprise. The weather can make the wait bearable, no?