Prices for Howdens kitchen units

slevin

andthethreebears wrote: »

Hi!
Has anyone had a quote from Howdens for worktops recently?
I am interested in solid wood and wood-style laminate.
Howdens have the nicest colours I've seen (oak block) and I was wondering what sort of price I'd be looking at per 3m length.
Thanks in advance

was quoted for 3m laminate square edged:
WOH6860 Oak Block Sq edge 3m 616 38 W/Top £114+VAT

bambammy

We were quoted Iroko 40 x 616 x 3000 - £720

I found the same worktop at barncrest.co.uk

His quotes for applicances were quoted £450 for a beko double oven.

I can find cheaper appliances online.

sueandpat

alanhl wrote: »

after Natalie5's rant i think i will stick with B&Q, at least you get civility with them, and the difference in quality is probably ignorable

What an idiot!

m00min

sueandpat wrote: »

What an idiot!

Maybe so, but at least he wasn't commenting on a post that was over 3 years old...

nictry

I know it is usually only the 'negatives' that tend to be highlighted on forums but I did just want to urge some caution with Howdens (as compared to standard retailers like B&Q and Magnet etc.)

I have recently had a Howdens kitchen fitted and the overall cost was not insignificant (£10k+) so you would think some care/attention/cust service would be in order, however in my case the entire process (following payment) was a nightmare, the initial receipt of the units/worktop/appliances etc. had nearly 40% of the items missing (this despite them having known about the order/delivery for weeks) so a kitchen fitter was booked and could barely do any work withouth constant chasing for the missing parts etc.

There were continued missing items, the delivery driver was a rude and ignorant guy who abused my neighbours just because they asked if they could move their car off their drive (he had blocked their drive and hadnt even started the unload process)

Now things are even worse, one of the appliances broke almost immed and they pretty much accused me of making it up????? The cooker chimney was dented, again I was accused of causing the damage and the biggest nightmare of all is the so called pro fit flooring is coming apart and yet again this appears to be 'our' fault, the fact it can only be fitted one way and our fitter was 15 years experienced seems to be totally unconcerning to them, so we could end up with a kitchen floor that needs completely lifting and the whole kitchen needing refitted

So as they say 'buyer beware' these guys are used to dealing with big corporate customers, tradespeople etc. if you are an individual buying through a builder etc (as we were) you may find your treatment from aftersales leaves a lot to be desired!

nick271

beaker141 wrote: »

My FIL is in the trade and uses Howdens in Altrincham a lot. I was in the market for a new kitchen so he asked and the manager really wanted to quote for me and had a price promise on.

I already had a costing for a B&Q kitchen.

The B&Q quote couldnt actually be beaten by Howdens, despite him giving me the best discount he could. B&Q was flatpack and Howdens were rigid cabinets but I dont see why this is such a big deal (I can build a flat pack up in 10 mins and once fitted under worktops is as rigid as it would ever need to be). The doors to be fair were better quality but my kitchen is a stop gap for a few years so didnt matter.

B&Q were cheaper by far on other things like worktops, sink/tap pack etc.

i would like to challange you to make a flat pack unit in ten minutes to the same spec as a howdens rigid....because i bet it wont be level

cddc

nick271 wrote: »

i would like to challange you to make a flat pack unit in ten minutes to the same spec as a howdens rigid....because i bet it wont be level

Nor will a Howdens wall unit half the time when it has been bumped on its journey.... ask any fitter who has to screw it back into shape.... Superior claims for the sturdiness and rigidity of Howdens units make me laugh, it is not like they are anything like the same spec as the rigid built German kitchens and at the price point you would not expect them to be....

The main reasons why you might buy from Howdens are and always have been:

1) If you pay the right price and the builder/fitter is not profiteering they are reasonable value for money.

2) Being pre-built they are normally quicker to fit and therefore save on Labour charges. Normally half a day or a day depending on the number of units.

3) They have most things in stock so planning and picking problems can normally be easily solved.

That is it. Claims for anything else are all hot air.....

The downsides are that the warranty (5 years only) lies with the tradesman not you, as they bought it and that Lamona appliances have a poor reputation for reliability.

There are pros and cons to almost everyone at this price point

cddc

Kitchen DesignR, we all know that time is money, fuel costs money, etc.. No one denies the right of a tradesman to make a living. As a Howdens man you are quite aware I am sure of what I am talking about, and I am certainly not trying to tar all tradesmen or Howdens account holders with the same brush which would be a gross misrepresentation but....

Why do you think there are so many threads on here in the Is this quote fair section of this board on Howdens prices?

Like I said, if you pay the right price, Howdens are good value. If a tradesman follows your percentage margin example of a door on to a whole kitchen, then that kitchen ceases to be good value for the end customer. Simple as that. What equates to £20 on a door can easily be £1000's on a kitchen, and the tradesman has scarcely spent more time or fuel on ordering the kitchen than he has on collecting the door. Unless he does a Tesco's and offers free fitting......

I am certainly not begrudging the right of of tradesmen to make a living and the majority do not operate in this way, but it amazes me that I regularly come across Howdens quotes for end users that are higher that I would quote as a Wickes Designer. So much for the advantage of trade discount..

Equally I come across just as many Howdens quotes I cannot get close to... so just why is that then?:D

cddc

Fair comment to a degree on retail KD... some margin on both fits and solid surface is to be expected, they are sold, administered and warrantied by the retailer after all, but you are right in saying that sometimes retailers royally milk an undeserved margin out of both. If you as a customer want a large company warranty on these items then expect to pay extra, sometimes alot extra.....

At least if you go from one branch to another of the same retailer with the same plan you should, theoretically get the same price....or thereabouts. Even as a tradesman, let alone and end user, you cant say that about different branches of Howdens, prices seem to vary on a whim...

Most kitchen pricing is to some extent smoke and mirrors, but with Howdens it seems to be covered in an even thicker layer of dense fog than almost anyone else...not only do you have different tradesmen pricing the end user differently, but you have different branches of Howdens giving that tradesman different prices. No wonder customers get confused....... and that is just the tradesman let alone the end user.

Like I said earlier, there are good reasons why you might want to buy you kitchen via Howdens, but a clear and transparent price is not one of them....

Bakewell54

Just missed the sale, gutted, now may need to wait until next year :-(
Their kitchens are the best I have seen. Natalie5 very informative, had to laugh at alanhl if he thinks that Natalie's post was a rant!