Pussy willow plant $8.90 online but $14.90 in stores? Ikea explains why

What is Chinese New Year without some pussy willows in the home?

A man saw that the popular festive plant was advertised on the Ikea website as $8.90, but when he went to the store, the price was actually $14.90.

When contacted by Stomp, Ikea apologised for the confusion and explained the technical issue, which raised more questions for Stomp contributor Steven.

He recounted: "I saw an Ikea CNY promotion showing that the pussy willow was going at a promotional price of $8.90 a bunch.

"I drove from my home in Bishan to Ikea Alexandra and saw the pussy willow there selling at $14.90, which was puzzling as it differed from their official website.

"I asked a staff member at the nearby info counter. She checked and said the website showed the wrong details and hence, it was really selling at $14.90. My family and I were puzzled and felt misled by their website and left Ikea rather bemused."

The Stomp contributor shared a link to the $8.90 pussy willow on the Ikea website, a screenshot of it taken on Jan 14 and a photo of the pussy willow at Ikea Alexandra priced at $14.90.

In response to a Stomp query, Ikea said: "Thank you for flagging this issue to us and we apologise for any confusion caused.

"We noticed that the link you shared directs to an old CNY webpage from a few years ago and it was also sitting within the Ikea Mexico framework. We've looked into this technical issue and it should be resolved now.

ALSO READ: Ikea to spend $4.4 billion on stores as it adapts to e-commerce

"We'd also like to confirm that $14.90 is the correct price of the coloured pussy willows and it has been marked down to $10.90 as of Jan 17. Customers can refer to this link for more information: www.ikea.com/sg/en/campaigns/chinese-new-year/"

Asked about Ikea's response, the Stomp contributor said: "Personally I feel it’s Ikea's responsibility in ensuring their website compatibility and competency.

"Moreover, it’s for CNY period and when you navigated in that so-called 'Mexico' site, once you clicked on the Ikea logo, it returned to the Singapore page. It is puzzling why Mexico would have Chinese New Year, and with pussy willow? A quick search shows a different breed of willows in Mexico."

He told Stomp that he has since bought his pussy willow.

"But not from Ikea," he said.

This article was first published in Stomp. Permission required for reproduction.