Kitchen supplier recommendations?

[dandan]

Sorry, spec was probably bad terminology. I know from what you have said that the DIY carcasses are better by a long way.

I meant 18mm doors, lacquered and in gloss white.

Probably right on the Howdens price, my mate who's account it is said it looked high so is going to look at it for me when he gets a second.

Howdens unit is called gloss white integrated handle. DIY is livorna white.

Thanks for your input on this colour!

[steviejoiner74]

I sent a customer to howdens to choose a kitchen,they liked the style one of their friends had so wanted the same. They quoted them 10 grand all in. I got the details of the kitchen and all the appliances and was quoted 5800. This is what pisses most people off about howdens,blatant robbery.

[Colour Republic]

No spec was the right word just wanted to make sure you were comparing apples with apples

Now they are the same in terms of finish i.e. lacquered, however the DIY door you've selected is a 'slab' door which is always going to be cheaper than a integrated 'J' profile handless door. If you want to do a price comparison then select the Multiwood Welford Bright White from DIY. Also don't forget to factor in DIY's delivery charge. I'm pretty sure DIY will still be much cheaper than Howdens and for a better quailty kitchen, although these extra charges for delivery must be taken in to account ;)

[dandan]

Funny enough, I noticed the delivery. 90 from Howdens and 75 from DIY.

I even joked with the Howdens rep that toolstation will do free delivery on a 10 quid order and he won't for a whole kitchen. He just stared at me like I was an idiot ;-)

Thanks for the advice, will check it out in the morning. I am a bit Kitchened out for tonight.

[Colour Republic]

I sent a customer to howdens to choose a kitchen,they liked the style one of their friends had so wanted the same. They quoted them 10 grand all in. I got the details of the kitchen and all the appliances and was quoted 5800. This is what pisses most people off about howdens,blatant robbery.

The reason Howdens do this is because they try to protect the tradesmans profit margin. Joe Bloggs gets quoted £10k, you get it for £5.8K. So you can charge the customer £6,7,8,9k and make a margin for your running around. Trouble is that 10k was a crazy price to start with and is so far off the mark it's stupid. It would have been far better for Howdens to quote your client at £7k, supply you at £5.8k trade then you split the difference with your customer. They get a 'deal' and you as trade cover your costs and margin.

Discounts % means nothing in the kitchen industry. We hold a number of accounts with many kitchen suppliers, our discounts range from 10%-87%, yet after discount many of the prices are similar. The supplier that discounts us 10% started at a realistic price of say £100 a unit so we pay £90, however the supplier that discounts us 87% (no guessing who this is!) has a starting 'retail' price of £700 for that same unit, discount that by 87% and suprise suprise it works out after discount to be £91.

[steviejoiner74]

Like I said I've not had much bother with howdens but they are starting to price themselves out of the market now for new customersIt's easy for us to use them as well because you can swap a carcass or a door same day. The last few kitchens we have done have been chosen and punched by the customer themselves. 2 from bq which were a disaster from the design to missing pieces which take weeks to sort out. The other from wren had similar problems but the quality of kitchen was overall better.

[Colour Republic]

Like I said I've not had much bother with howdens but they are starting to price themselves out of the market now for new customersIt's easy for us to use them as well because you can swap a carcass or a door same day. The last few kitchens we have done have been chosen and punched by the customer themselves. 2 from bq which were a disaster from the design to missing pieces which take weeks to sort out. The other from wren had similar problems but the quality of kitchen was overall better.

And there lies the rub!!!! The very reason Howdens do so well isn't because of price or quality but because you can swap units or doors over there and then, locally. However why do you need to swap bits over? is it because the delivery was messed up in the first place or because of poor planning by the kitchen designer?

The kitchens we use are made to order and are on average 2 weeks from order but can be anything up to 6-7weeks for bespoke stuff. But they are cheaper and twice the quality. Deliveries are 9 times out of 10 spot on without missing parts or damages, and if they aren't the suppliers will move heaven and earth to make sure it gets sorted ASAP! The trade off for supplying customers with a better quality kitchen at a cheaper price is forward planning. Considering most kitchens are in place 10 years+, it seems silly to me to choose a supplier just because they can sort out their cock ups or ours within the same day. That is a disservice to your customers who will have to live with that kitchen for god knows how many years!

It is well worth the effort in finding a kicthen supplier who may not be on your immediate doorstep ;)

[steviejoiner74]

I hear what you are saying colour republic,will defo be considering the suppliers you have recommended for future builds

[dandan]

The door samples arrived from DIY and the quality is fantastic. I think that is decision made.

Thanks for the feedback.

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[dandan]

Oh, and as colour republic said on another thread about how he likes a tidy under sink cupboard.

Feast your eyes on this beauty that I will soon be ripping out It wasn't my work before anybody asks...

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[Colour Republic]

Notice you got a Remo door sample. Remo is made by PWS but DIY kitchens also do Welford Bright White which is made by Multiwood which is cheaper, however to complicate matters further DIY often send out their own version which is identical to the Welford. The only difference between them is really only down to the type of trims which come in the range.

So well worth getting your kitchen priced in the Welford as well as the Remo ;)

[dandan]

Thanks again colour!

The remo was the wifes choice, funny how it is the most expensive and she managed to pick it without even seeing the price tag

The Welford seems to have been renamed as the Luca gloss white, that looks like the favourite at the moment. It is between that and the Livorna. We just need to decide if we want handle or handleless.

As you say, it seems there is a difference in the feature ends and trim by model. I wonder if the end panels could be swapped between models - gloss white laquered on both obviously.

There is too much choice for a simple man like me

[wine~o]

DanDan please do keep this thread updated with your experience..

[nick200]

DanDan please do keep this thread updated with your experience..

I will second that as we are doing ours early next year and it is good to see what is out there.

[dandan]

I will do. A few more decisions to make and then I will start ordering things. Going to be a busy Christmas this year.