A woman who works in a warehouse has successfully defended her Flatpack World Champion title by assembling a bedside table in under nine minutes. Hayley McAuley, aged 38, expressed her excitement at winning again at the Flatpack World Championships held in ExCel London. She mentioned her disbelief at achieving the feat once more, especially considering the tough competition this year.
Hailing from Wigan, Lancashire, and running her own flatpack support business, Hayley received a golden Allen key medal for completing the bedside table in just eight minutes and 20 seconds. This time was over a minute faster than her performance at the previous year’s event.
The competition, which was part of Grand Designs Live, featured two rounds where participants had to assemble an IKEA Billy bookcase in the initial stage. The top two fastest contestants from each round advanced to the final stage. In the final, the remaining four competitors raced to put together an IKEA Billy two-drawer bedside table in front of a live audience, with property expert Kunle Barker providing commentary.
Kunle praised Hayley’s exceptional skills, noting her unmatched performance. He marveled at her ability to win the championship consecutively, raising questions about whether anyone could dethrone her in the future. Another contestant, Mark, likened the experience to building Lego on a larger scale and advised taking a short break if feeling overwhelmed during the assembly process.
All the furniture assembled during the competition will be given to the British Heart Foundation, as confirmed by the event organizers.