'Crazy Busy' Oak Creek IKEA Opens With Thousands In Line

OAK CREEK, WI — At just before 9 a.m. Wednesday, an explosion of yellow and blue confetti filled the air, "Let's Go Crazy," the 1984 hit by Prince and the Revolution blared on the loudspeakers, and shoppers began filing into Oak Creek's IKEA single-file, marking the Swedish home furnishing's entree into Wisconsin.

Kay Tietz from Milwaukee and Christine Romano from Bay View were among the first people in line to get into the new store, and had been waiting in line since 4:15 a.m. - an astonishing four-and-a-half hours for their turn. "I've never been to one yet, it's a new experience for me," Romano said. Tietz said the festivities were pretty organized. "We're having fun, and it's going to be a lot easier to shop here than driving to Schaumberg," she said.

There was no official estimate of the crowd that was on-hand to witness the opening of the state's first IKEA, however, it is safe to say there were thousands of eager shoppers from throughout the area that came out. To say that the lines blew away anything anyone had seen - even during their most harrowing Black Friday shopping experiences.

IKEA in Oak Creek is a massive 290,000 square-foot store. The line of waiting shoppers wound back-and-forth across the entire south facade of the store several times, snaked the entire length of the store's west wall and halfway across the store's back north wall.

Oak Creek Mayor Dan Bukiewicz was one of several officials to speak to the waiting crowd before Wednesday's opening. He and others spoke from a raised stage set up in the store's parking lot.

Some Oak Creek residents didn't have to go so far to get their IKEA experience. Deborah Tice said she walked over from her house to stand in line. "It's actually been pretty fun. I walked over from the road opposite S. Ikea Way. I have no clue what to expect, I just thought I'd come and check it out."

Wednesday's grand opening was Andrew Trentacoste's his fourth time inside an IKEA, owing his previous experiences to living out east in New Jersey. Trentacoste had the distinction of being the absolute last person in line when people were starting to be let in at about 9 a.m.

"I'm planning on browsing the store to see what it's like," he said. Trentacoste of Oak Creek also walked over and jumped into the line.

“We are so proud to serve the Milwaukee area community with our unique IKEA shopping experience and affordable home furnishing solutions,” said Samantha Gravina, store manager in a prepared statement. “The community has been so welcoming and today’s grand opening reflects that excitement. You can feel the enthusiasm of our co-workers and customers as soon as you enter the store.”

Grand Opening Day Hours:
Store: Open 9:00 a.m. | Close 9:00 p.m.
Restaurant: Open 9:00 a.m. | Close 8:30 p.m.

Regular Store Hours:
Monday through Saturday: Open 10:00 a.m. | Close 9:00 p.m.
Restaurant Open 9:30 a.m. | Close 8:30 p.m.
Sunday: Open 10:00 a.m. | Close 8:00 p.m.
Restaurant Open 9:30 a.m. | Close 7:30 p.m.

Fast Facts
Here are a few details about the store:

Oak Creek IKEA is one story tall
It is approximately 295,000 square feet.
1,100 parking spots
50 showrooms
3 model homes
self-service area
300-seat cafeteria
supervised children play area
preferred parking for families
employs about 250 people
generated 500 construction jobs.

Former Mayor Scaffidi said - at the time of the original Ikea announcement - that according to a 2012 survey of Oak Creek residents when asked what residents would like to see, they reported wanting two things: more restaurants, and IKEA.

The former mayor went on to say at that time that Northwestern Mutual approached him about the idea of bringing IKEA to Oak Creek - an idea he welcomed. "I think this is going to be a tremendous addition to the city," he said.

Images Via Scott Anderson Oak Creek Patch