Why Homeowners work with IKD, versus IKEA, for their Laundry Room Design

Homeowner feedback on laundry room design sums it up

We love IKEA. It’s why we base our designs on their products. IKEA products are affordable, good quality, and excellent space savers. If you’ve ever watched an episode of House Hunters International, you’ll know that any furniture store aimed toward a European market must maximize space.

In the U.S., that has translated to furniture great for small apartments, starter homes, and dorm room living. We don’t always think about IKEA as being able to compete with solid wood furniture and luxury homes, but with the right design, it can.

One area in which a professional IKEA design can elevate a space is the laundry room.

IKD provides professional laundry room designs

As we mentioned in a recent article, IKEA in-store planners are careful not to call themselves designers. IKEA trains these associates to understand room design basics and use the online planning tool. If your laundry room has a unique layout or requires special consideration, IKEA planners may not be well-equipped to handle the design.

While this is a free service, IKEA planning appointments are limited to two hours, and they’re mainly there to help you execute your design ideas rather than aid in the creative process.

---

---

IKD designers are professional designers. We use professional design software, we aren’t only familiar with IKEA products (meaning we can work and design with other brands), and design is our entire focus.

We’re especially proud of our laundry room designs featuring SEKTION cabinets with fronts by Semihandmade.

With us, you don’t get a two-hour slot; you get however long it takes. We expect and welcome questions, multiple revisions, and back-and-forth dialogue. Our designs include everything the free IKEA package does (elevations, shopping lists, prices, etc.), a 3D rendering of the room, and more.

---

---

Why did customers choose a $395 IKEA laundry room design from IKD?

Customers are aware that IKEA offers an online planning tool and in-store planning services. Our goal isn’t to convince anyone the only option is to hire a professional designer; it’s to show that doing so provides the best long-term value.

Here are four reasons why some of our customers have chosen to work with us over IKEA for their laundry room design.

1. The online IKEA Kitchen Planner is difficult to work with

Several customers have told us they used our services because the online kitchen planner is hard to work with. Note how it’s called the online kitchen planner? While you can get an idea of how a laundry room will look with the software (go to generic appliances and choose washing machine), it clearly caters to kitchen planning over other rooms.

“I’ve decided to play around with the Ikea kitchen planner but unfortunately I’m not a designer nor an architect and can’t really get to the result I want without a professional.” – Helen, IKD customer

“We are building again and I thought I could do it on my own but as you know the Ikea kitchen planner is very limited and frustrating to work with.” – Tammy, IKD customer

For example, you can’t include side panels in an IKEA home planner design or navigate certain IKEA hacks, both of which are often crucial in our laundry room designs. If you want your washer and dryer to have a built-in look, you won’t be able to see that on the planner.

2. IKD is better equipped to design around your needs

We have more than basic design skills. Design is what we do for a living, while it’s doubtful that your in-person IKEA planner has this career as an end goal. Customers have complained of faulty measurements, lack of attentiveness, and overall lack of skill from IKEA designers.

Whether you have to work around inconvenient ducts or sloped ceilings in your laundry room, we know how to account for these issues. It doesn’t help that in-store IKEA planners can only recommend IKEA products and approved IKEA hacks. If we know something else will work better for you, we’ll suggest it (while keeping your budget in mind).

For example, if you’re looking for space saving options in your laundry room design, IKEA won’t recommend innovative products like Rev-a-Shelf’s pullout wire clothes hamper or pull-down closet rods.

Note: We’re sure this feedback doesn’t reflect all IKEA planners, but it is some of the reasoning we’ve received from our customers.

“Florence and Albert did a fabulous job designing our laundry room. We had number of layout restrictions but they effortlessly worked around these and added functional options we had not thought of.” – IKD Houzz review

“I spent an hour with an Ikea kitchen planner and while they know Ikea products, they do not spend time trying to understand how I’m going to use the laundry/mud room.” – Diem, IKD customer

“We were working with an Ikea planner, however they were not very responsive and they are no longer doing installs in our area. In addition, the measurements they did twice were incorrect.” – Ryan, IKEA customer

3. We work well on a budget

Customers choose IKEA products because they are good quality and affordable, and they choose IKD for the same reason. We offer professional designs at a reasonable cost and respect your overall budget. (Check out these designs for less than $3,000.)

Remember, we aren’t working for IKEA; we’re working for you.

“Sure we can go with a custom cabinets designer but almost all of them use ikea quality furniture for triple the price.” – Helen, IKD customer

“I cannot, in good conscience, order $10k in cabinets and another $10k in appliances without spending a tiny fraction of that on an expert opinion with all the little nuances that come with doors, drawers, corners, and fixtures interacting with each other.” – Cory, IKD customer

“We unexpectedly had to gut our whole laundry room and thought IKD seemed like a great option to help us make it beautiful at a reasonable price.” – Ally, IKD customer

Especially when using the IKEA home planner, it’s difficult to tell exactly what products you’re putting into the space. If there was a cheaper option to fit your needs, you might never know.

Key Takeaway

IKD offers what IKEA can’t: professional designers that aren’t limited by time, products, and software. We value quality over quantity, and so do our customers.

“We’re working with you because we’re looking for professional designers who specialize in IKEA products, who are affordable, who produce great work, and have great reviews from previous clients!” – Brian IKD customer