I questioned its sturdiness when I was putting it together, but once it was completely built it was sturdy.  Instructions are pretty clear.  It keeps my first floor from being cluttered with jackets, shoes, and bookbags.  I can also hide the stuff that needs to upstairs in the bench until I actually go upstairs in stead of placing those items on the stairs.  Overall I'm very happy with the product.  I wish it was better quality of furniture instead of the MDF stuff, but then again, at this price point real wood is not what you get.