This is a great looking stool for the price--Yes, assembly is a bit of a pain, but it took me about 25 minutes to put together (not too bad in my opinion)...just looks a little daunting at first seeing all the pieces it requires. The instructions and pictures are very easy to understand and follow.We haven't gotten too much use out of it yet, since both my kids are a little young yet, but I imagine a non-slip stick-on of some sort would be a good extra safety precaution to add to the stool.