I only shop at places that have good return policies.
Target - 90 day return policy - no receipt needed, can scan item with credit card used to purchase.
Home Depot - 90 day return policy.
JCrew - generous 60 day return policy.
Williams Sonoma has the best return policy. I had purchased the stovetop Bialetti Cappucino maker ($89) during Christmas. Well worth it. A month later, the bottom black part started to peel off and bubble. I took it to WS with no box and no receipt. No questions asked. Exchanged immediately. They stand behind their products obviously.
Ikea has the worst return policy. I stopped shopping there since the return policy became too strict. It used to be ok to assemble furniture and see how it looks in your home. If you didn't like it, you could unassemble the furniture back into the box and return it. No problems. It has a stringent return policy now. I'm not sure when they changed the return policy, perhaps in the last 1-2 years, but box cannot be opened at all (i.e. assembled) if you want to return it. I used to enjoy shopping there, but frankly, I don't even feel it is worth it to shop there. The furniture is less expensive than most other furniture places, but it looks and feels it. It's not that cheap in terms of getting more for your money. You basically get what you pay for.
Ikea's motto used to be "it's ok" to return furniture, but should now be "it's not ok to return furniture".
Who the hell is going to buy an unassembled box of furniture and not assemble it? Now you're stuck with it. Ikea only cares about making money. They also started charging $0.05 /plastic bag. Couldn't they incorporate the bag prices by charging slightly more for furniture?
I'm glad IKEA's got more competition now but i'm sure they still dominate. I like West Elm (William Sonoma Owns it) and CB2.com (Crate and Barrel Owns it) both.
