Constant perils of purchasing furniture

ALWAYS think before you buy. That was the lesson I learned from a trip to a well-known Swedish furniture outlet last week.

- ANDY PHILLIPS

With Older Daughter wanting an armchair to loll about in while in her room, a trip to said retailer seemed the easiest way to fulfil a promise made much earlier.

I am a bit of a fan of the retailer in question, and have kitted out various rooms with flat-packed furniture, from bedside tables and wardrobes to bookshelves, occasional tables and even a couple of outdoor chairs.

Plus I am addicted to those narrow shelves which are more like a sort of ledge that you put your stuff on, or can use to display pictures without actually making holes in the wall, as you just stand them up.

But it seems like I am far from the only person who has a tendency towards Scandinavian-designed items with odd names.

The shop in question reported a rise in sales of almost 12% in 2023, driven perhaps by the move to working from home and a cost-of-living crisis which means people no longer have £2,000 or upwards to splash on a new sofa or three-piece suite.