Pet Hates........or FFS

[AJSki2fly]

With respect to comfort generally in fast food restaurants nowadays I think it is of little consequence as far a marketing is concerned. The key aim will be to get people in bums on seat, eat the stuff and then for them to move ASAP, to get another bum on the seat. So putting seats/tables close together and maximising seats is key, put lots of kids together in one area to make a lots of noise will ensure older people move on quickly. I am sure there other things put in place to max out turnaround and revenue.

As for Ikea I personally find there shops very irritating, primarily the layout is deliberately set out to make you walk through a maze and see every possible item in the store, before getting to the point you can actually take it off the shelf, pay for it and get out. The restaurant I suspect will be a loss leader, it offers reasonably good food at good prices, that entices people to go and have something to eat and probably spend more time in the store, and buy more.

The days of a nice Lyons Corner tea room type, or sitting in a comfortable chair on the shop floor in a department store while getting personal service have been put in the bin.

[Marco]

Marco, your argument seems well reasoned, but if you are drawing on your experiences in retail, you may be a little out of date - I'm sure that there have been plenty of re-thinking during the last 30 years or so, and the psychology of shopping will have become something of a science. And in an earlier post you questioned how we could tell whether our need to get out of there soonish is due to it being made psychologically uncomfortable by subliminal methods. The answer is: you can't! That's because it's subliminal!

Yup, I fully understand that. However, my point was how do you gauge whether the "need to get out there soonish" is because of subliminally being made to feel psychologically uncomfortable, as outlined, or because you were just in a hurry regardless? And so it wouldn't have mattered how comfortable or otherwise it felt being there, as the outcome would've ended up the same...

Also, as you admit to never having darkened their door, then your view wouldn't necessarily be any more valid than me posting a review of say, Rammstein, having never heard anything by them. I reckon you should visit a Maccie's and 'take one for the team', you'll have burnt it off by autumn, a few days of raking leaves should do the trick.

Ha - very good! If I had a choice of that or sticking pins in my eyes, I think 'they eyes would have it' [just]!

IMO, they don't deliberately set out to make their restaurants uncomfortable, I think they look the way they do for practical reasons (primary colours to attract the young kids, after all they're the ones running things these days...

That's also my view. Pity, as there are much more interesting places for young kids to eat, if only their parents had a little more imagination!

I can't stand how folks these days are so easily brainwashed.

Marco.

[Pigmy Pony]

After one trip round Ikea, we got to the checkout and Mrs. P realised we'd forgotten to pick up some glasses, so I said, "I'll go and get them, back in a minute". Never again! Going against their 'one way system' I kept getting lost, and eventually had to ask one of the staff for directions. Then I got lost again! Would have been much quicker to leave, then go back in through the entrance.

[Pigmy Pony]

Yup, I fully understand that. However, my point was how do you gauge whether the "need to get out there soonish" is because of subliminally being made to feel psychologically uncomfortable, as outlined, or because you were just in a hurry regardless? And so it wouldn't have mattered how comfortable or otherwise it felt being there, as the outcome would've ended up the same...



Ha - very good! If I had a choice of that or sticking pins in my eyes, I think 'they eyes would have it' [just]!



That's also my view. Pity, as there are much more interesting places for young kids to eat, if only their parents had a little more imagination!

I can't stand how folks these days are so easily brainwashed.

Marco.

I don't think the parents are brainwashed, rather it's the kids that are. The parents are then bullied.

[Beobloke]

The last time I went to Ikea, it was before the Southampton store opened and required an hour and a half trip to Bristol. We wanted two sets of glass doors for our bookcases. I checked the stock online in the morning and found they had four in stock, so off we went.

On arriving, they did indeed have four pairs of doors, but three were damaged. I spoke to an employee who basically couldn’t have cared less, so I asked to speak to the manager. He appeared and confirmed they had no more in stock, no they wouldn’t order me any more and ship them to me and, basically, it was my hard luck.

I found my remaining set of doors in another store but, other than that, haven’t been back since. Shame in a way - their Daim Bar cake was awesome...

[Macca]

If the other children they know are going to McDonalds then they will want to go to McDonalds. Pretty hard for parents to tell them no. I'd have no bother with it mind but then neither did my parents. We had burgers twice a year. My birthday and my brothers' birthday. Brothers were twins so I missed out there too. And it was Wimpy, no Maccy D in those days. That was also the only two times of the year we got to go to the cinema too. And if you told young people that today …(cont. page 94)

[Pigmy Pony]

You were lucky! Eating out for me was when we made a fire in the woods, and chucking in some spuds liberated from the pantry. At certain times of the year a visit to a nearby orchard provided the dessert. Rock hard pears that tasted like wood.

[Roy S]

Little forum niggle, recently responded to a couple of 'wanted' ads, took the trouble to take pics of the items etc. & then failed to get a 'yes please'/'no thanks'/'kiss me arse' (without prompting). Anyway, just to say I probably won't bother in future.

[Barry]

Little forum niggle, recently responded to a couple of 'wanted' ads, took the trouble to take pics of the items etc. & then failed to get a 'yes please'/'no thanks'/'kiss me arse' (without prompting). Anyway, just to say I probably won't bother in future.

I sympathise Roy.

I used to feel the same when providing a detailed and full reply to a technical query; my efforts were completely ignored by the OP. A little courtesy goes a long way and costs nothing.

[Roy S]

I used to feel the same when providing a detailed and full reply to a technical query; my efforts were completely ignored by the OP

Even more galling Barry, all it takes is a quick 'thanks'