Kitchen quagmire - who to go with?

justick9

Hi,
We've just completed on a house that needs total renovation and money is EXCEPTIONALLY tight.
Having said that, this is our 'house for life' so we want to get things right first time and get the best quality for the best price etc rather than the cheapest.
So... can anyone recommend a kitchen supplier? We've had a plan from Howdens and Wickes with B&Q booked in on Monday and Space Kitchens booked in on Sunday.
Researching this site and review centre I think i'm going to cancel Space and B&Q because the reviews are so bad. Even Howdens seem to get a rough ride.
So who is the definitive best for good quality solid carcass soft close door kitchens with great price?
We have a budget of £5k (to include fitting) and need to include a double oven and five ring hob in that. Pref wood worktops. It's not a massive kitchen...Are we being unrealistic?
Seem to have spent days trawling the internet for the holy grail now...

aliasojo

Don't think about cancelling Space Kitchens....do it. Awful company.

Wickes have a good reputation and I found the units sturdy compared to some. Only drawback was that they dont have colour carcase options...it's white or nothing. I have a Wickes oak kitchen and at time of buying, I didn't think the carcase colour thing was a problem but it kinda bothers me slightly now. That's just a personal thing though....the quality is fine.

Howdens don't/didn't do as tall units as Wickes either, their larder type units were smaller (this was an issue for us but may not be for you).

Wickes didn't do a 5 ring hob when we were looking but they may have changed things now. 5 ring hobs are not a standard for a lot of places ....some may be able to order you in a 'special' but a lot will only deal with their standard stock list. We had to source ours separately.

justick9

Thanks for the advice. We're hoping to go for a white kitchen anyway so the carcass colour's not an issue.
I was very keen on Wickes until reading some posts on here and the kitchen planner was vile to me, which put me off. We have an awkward shape kitchen and i think he got the hump because he had his work cut out to come up with a suitable design.
Howdens' plan was unimaginative to say the least. Get the impression people aren't interested unless your kitchen is a nice regular shape for them to slot everything in.
Notice other people suggest independent kitchen firms but have so far steered clear in case they come back way to expensive. anyone know how they compare price wise?
All the firms all say the same, great units at half the price of our competitors. I feel swamped by options but not able to wade through and know who to trust and who not to trust.
will cancel space kitchens tomorrow!

leveller2911

Ive fitted Howdens and Wickes kitchen, quality of componets are roughly equal,Howdens in my opinion are a lot better in terms of "missing Items", whenever someting was missing(which was unusual) they would bring out the next day, just phoned the rep and its sorted.Wickes however is a different matter, you get put through to someone who knows nothing abouth the product and you even have to explain what the component actually is, very poor in my opinion.Then your lucky if you receive the missing items within 4-6 weeks at least with Howdens its all off the shelf...... In my view I'd go for Howdens, not perfect but they are helpful and get problems sorted out quickly which is important when you paying money to chap to fit it ,if he gets held up due to material problems it costs money.....Good Luck

PS im a joiner and make kitchens but you wont find a bespoke kitchen cheap..lol.. independants usually get their units from the big boys anyway and more often than not work out more expensive.

Edinburghlass_2

I've had a plan done by Homebase and Ikea, Ikea you can download their planner then access your own plan via their website so can chop and change your units and appliances and it will update your price list.

However, my kitchen fitter is not too keen on Ikea and suggested Howdens. Howdens want to come out but I'm not keen on that so my own fitter is coming back tomorrow to discuss what I want/need. I prefer to go to the store for design plans rather than have them in the house as that way I can go when I want and not get "trapped" by a salesman.

I'm almost sick of the whole thing but my fitter has a window of opportunity in a couple of weeks so its probably good that I make up my mind now and be done with it, going for white gloss that I do know!

leveller2911

Edinburghlass wrote: »

I've had a plan done by Homebase and Ikea, Ikea you can download their planner then access your own plan via their website so can chop and change your units and appliances and it will update your price list.

However, my kitchen fitter is not too keen on Ikea and suggested Howdens. Howdens want to come out but I'm not keen on that so my own fitter is coming back tomorrow to discuss what I want/need. I prefer to go to the store for design plans rather than have them in the house as that way I can go when I want and not get "trapped" by a salesman.

I'm almost sick of the whole thing but my fitter has a window of opportunity in a couple of weeks so its probably good that I make up my mind now and be done with it, going for white gloss that I do know!

Ive dealt with 4 branches of Howdens in east sussex and Kent, all of my customers liked the way Howdens dealt with them, no hard sell, pressure to buy etc. Personally I don't like Ikea either, for one thing they don't allow enough room for the services(pipes etc) at the back of their units, also poor quality hinges too. Good luck PS one last thing DON'T DON'T go for gloss worktops at any cost......if you can get real wood worktops steer clear of Beech as you can get mould very quickly around the sink and taps

garthdp

stay away from moben:eek:
made that mistake once never again:mad:

aliasojo

leveller2911 wrote: »

Wickes however is a different matter, you get put through to someone who knows nothing abouth the product and you even have to explain what the component actually is, very poor in my opinion.Then your lucky if you receive the missing items within 4-6 weeks

I dont want to sound like I'm defending Wickes over all others but I've really found the opposite to be true. Their customer service was great and changed doors for me when I wasn't happy with something. The new doors were sent out straight away and I got them a few days later.

No messing around and no lengthy wait.

I suppose there will be good and bad experiences with everyone.

leveller2911

aliasojo wrote: »

I dont want to sound like I'm defending Wickes over all others but I've really found the opposite to be true. Their customer service was great and changed doors for me when I wasn't happy with something. The new doors were sent out straight away and I got them a few days later.

No messing around and no lengthy wait.

I suppose there will be good and bad experiences with everyone.

It could depend on the quality of staff at the branches, agree to that there are good and bad in all companies.:D

Doozergirl

aliasojo wrote: »

I dont want to sound like I'm defending Wickes over all others but I've really found the opposite to be true. Their customer service was great and changed doors for me when I wasn't happy with something. The new doors were sent out straight away and I got them a few days later.

No messing around and no lengthy wait.

I suppose there will be good and bad experiences with everyone.

I think the thing with Howdens is that there isn't a wait. You can go and pick up a missing bit right there and then or they will stick it on the next delivery for you. They do understand the trade aspect of it - no fitter wants to be left without important details. Best of a bad bunch really, pricing isn't transparent which annoys me no end, but none of them are.

I did have a rant recently but as long as I'm not given the white carcasses and we're given a decent price I won't complain.

The Howdens kitchen brochure is beautiful. Best one out there, better than Magnet retail even and they've spent moeny on that.

Edinburghlass - you will not get a hard sell from Howdens, it's really not what they're ab out. They'll just be sizing it correctly for you and then designing.

Edinburghlass_2

Doozergirl wrote: »

I think the thing with Howdens is that there isn't a wait. You can go and pick up a missing bit right there and then or they will stick it on the next delivery for you. They do understand the trade aspect of it - no fitter wants to be left without important details. Best of a bad bunch really, pricing isn't transparent which annoys me no end, but none of them are.

I did have a rant recently but as long as I'm not given the white carcasses and we're given a decent price I won't complain.

The Howdens kitchen brochure is beautiful. Best one out there, better than Magnet retail even and they've spent moeny on that.

Edinburghlass - you will not get a hard sell from Howdens, it's really not what they're ab out. They'll just be sizing it correctly for you and then designing.

Funny you should mention the Howdens brochure as I left it out the other day at work and someone said to me what lovely kitchens so it does impress although I'm glad I went to Ikea as there you get whole kitchens laid out and can really see what can be done rather than a lot of bits of kitchen layouts.

My fitter is coming at lunchtime and Howdens is really close by so if needed we can pop along there together, also useful if we need something once we get started.