Ask Ikea they have a list of installers you can use. At least in every city I have worked in.

Ikea now owns a part of Traemond. I'd ask for referrals from them and call previous local clients. We had Traemond install our kitchen in March 2019, but we hired a separate contractor to do demo, wall repair, flooring, painting, plumbing ( job included laundry room, hallways and powder room),

Traemond did an excellent job.

They dont offer lists anymore since they bought Traemand. We tried last spring and they told us they did not have a list of contractors and that Traemond did not operate where we live (2nd largest city in MA !!!), and somebody also posted they did not operate in Providence (which is fairly close from Ikea Stoughton).

So, good luck.

What do the complaints look like? Ikea's kind of a mess right now, and while the good employees/installers may have moved on, or the owner discovered the joys of meth, it's equally likely he's gotten burned by unpredictable stock availability.

The complaints were about a local contractor we were considering and they go back a couple years so they’re not related to covid delays. I know that ikea is having lots of delays on items but that seems to be life nowadays

Have you already sourced you IKEA cabinets and doors? I ask because I have been waiting months for my basement fridge surround cabinets to be in stock near me. IKEA supply chain has pretty much fallen apart for most of the country with the exception of a few Midwest states and Nevada, kitchens and bookcases are impossible to buy. I have been trying since April and have had my orders canceled rather than postponed numerous times. They are very antiquated in today’s world and were not at all set up to weather a world wide pandemic.

No, I haven't made sure everything is in stock yet. I wanted to get a couple other things in place first, but I’ve definitely heard similar reports from other people.

I was able to buy all the cabinets I wanted (and am living in MA) with just a 1 month delay, which I think is good.

We had problems with other parts of the project, so this is far from being limited to Ikea. It now takes 12 weeks to get doors from Barker, which used to be 5 to 7 weeks. It will take a few months to get 4 windows (Marvin) - we did it because we did not need them quickly and wanted to secure a good pricing).

I dont think it is a good moment to start a lengthy renovating process, independently of what provider you choose.

My disgust was that my delays were turned into cancelations with refunds instead of just asking me to wait. I had to twice repurchase my orders and start over. I have my fingers crossed this time will end with me getting my order but I will not hold my breath.