| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please 21:42 - Jul 23 with 19002 views | budgiebasher |
Does anyone have any useful tips for buying a kitchen from Howdens (our builders have suggested that we buy our kitchen there)? We've found a kitchen that we like and have got a quote but I am not sure how much I can realistically bargain them down. They say that they "will not be beaten on like for like quotations" but am guessing that it will be hard to establish what this really means.
Does anyone have any tips that they can give me - either on how best to negotiate with Howdens or where else we should be looking?
Thanks in advance for any help. |  |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 21:56 - Jul 23 with 18950 views | chiddley |
Hi mate.... get someone with a trade account and buy in September or October as big giveaways.
I bought a paintable kitchen which comes pre primed and sprayed in a colour of my choice.
A lot of good builders swear by howdens kitchens.
One thing though the designers tend to vary from branch to branch so worth getting various options from different branches. |  |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:00 - Jul 23 with 18926 views | Vic |
As far as I’m aware they only sell to trade to your builder/filter is likely to be able to get you your best price.
Also worth trying Benchmarx - next door to Howdens at Martlesham if your in th eipswich area.
I’ve bought from both in the last couple of years. Benchmark was cheaper, but Howdens was slightly better.
Tip: do NOT go for the cheapest Lamona appliances, sinks etc which Howdens use as standard. Upgrade, it is worth the money. |  |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:02 - Jul 23 with 18917 views | Harry_Palmer |
Get another like for like quote or two and play them off against each other, they will come down from the original price I guarantee it.
I would suggest getting one of the alternative quotes from benchmarx, who I found came out slightly less but for an equally as good if not better product.
Alternatively, if you are feeling brave, you can do what I plan to do and use the plans you get from the others and order direct from these guys who will blow both of the others out of the water on price.
https://www.diy-kitchens.com/ [Post edited 23 Jul 2018 22:09]
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:08 - Jul 23 with 18904 views | UB9Blue |
Howdens are quite expensive even after discount although it does depend where you are in the country. I got a quote from a branch local to me using my employers trade account but got it bettered by £1100 from a branch in the North East. Even allowing for the £200 delivery charge it turned up on time and all items were as ordered.
This was on a kitchen for a house I was doing up and the spend was sub £5k.
Wickes and B&Q will also deal if you take a quote into them.
Bear in mind the appliances from all these stores can be more expensive than some online providers. |  | | |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:12 - Jul 23 with 18874 views | budgiebasher |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 21:56 - Jul 23 by chiddley |
Hi mate.... get someone with a trade account and buy in September or October as big giveaways.
I bought a paintable kitchen which comes pre primed and sprayed in a colour of my choice.
A lot of good builders swear by howdens kitchens.
One thing though the designers tend to vary from branch to branch so worth getting various options from different branches. |
Thanks - I'm in Cambridge where there are 2 x branches - we weren't particularly impressed by our designer so will go to the other branch to see if they have anything to add | |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:14 - Jul 23 with 18867 views | budgiebasher |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:00 - Jul 23 by Vic |
As far as I’m aware they only sell to trade to your builder/filter is likely to be able to get you your best price.
Also worth trying Benchmarx - next door to Howdens at Martlesham if your in th eipswich area.
I’ve bought from both in the last couple of years. Benchmark was cheaper, but Howdens was slightly better.
Tip: do NOT go for the cheapest Lamona appliances, sinks etc which Howdens use as standard. Upgrade, it is worth the money. |
In Cambridge and was thinking of going to Magnet for competitive quote. Thanks for tip re Lamona - someone else told me they tend to go wrong once they are out of warranty | |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:17 - Jul 23 with 18844 views | budgiebasher |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:02 - Jul 23 by Harry_Palmer |
Get another like for like quote or two and play them off against each other, they will come down from the original price I guarantee it.
I would suggest getting one of the alternative quotes from benchmarx, who I found came out slightly less but for an equally as good if not better product.
Alternatively, if you are feeling brave, you can do what I plan to do and use the plans you get from the others and order direct from these guys who will blow both of the others out of the water on price.
https://www.diy-kitchens.com/ [Post edited 23 Jul 2018 22:09]
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Thank you - my concern re diy-kitchens.com would be about the quality of the kitchen and the time that it would take to get missing parts / replacements for damaged parts. One of the reasons our builders like Howdens is that they can get these on next day delivery | |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:17 - Jul 23 with 18844 views | Guthrum |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:14 - Jul 23 by budgiebasher |
In Cambridge and was thinking of going to Magnet for competitive quote. Thanks for tip re Lamona - someone else told me they tend to go wrong once they are out of warranty |
My mother got a Magnet kitchen from Cambridge about 10 years ago. The kitchen itself has been vey good (tho there was some trouble with the fitters). |  |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:19 - Jul 23 with 18835 views | Deano69 |
Yes, go next door to Benchmarx, we got a better kitchen and a better deal.
Oh, and never, never, ever buy one from Wren [Post edited 23 Jul 2018 22:21]
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:19 - Jul 23 with 18828 views | budgiebasher |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:08 - Jul 23 by UB9Blue |
Howdens are quite expensive even after discount although it does depend where you are in the country. I got a quote from a branch local to me using my employers trade account but got it bettered by £1100 from a branch in the North East. Even allowing for the £200 delivery charge it turned up on time and all items were as ordered.
This was on a kitchen for a house I was doing up and the spend was sub £5k.
Wickes and B&Q will also deal if you take a quote into them.
Bear in mind the appliances from all these stores can be more expensive than some online providers. |
I'm surprised that different branches can undercut each other but it is definitely worth trying | |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:25 - Jul 23 with 18804 views | UB9Blue |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:19 - Jul 23 by budgiebasher |
I'm surprised that different branches can undercut each other but it is definitely worth trying |
It worked for me.
Also be aware that some of the new slimline worktops are sold by a number of companies at varying rates. The most recent one I bought was more expensive at Wickes than Benchmarx...who are owned by Travis Perkins..who also iwn Wickes | | | |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:30 - Jul 23 with 18778 views | blustutu |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:19 - Jul 23 by budgiebasher |
I'm surprised that different branches can undercut each other but it is definitely worth trying |
I use Howdens (I’m a carpenter) and their products are pretty good but their pricing is ridiculous. I get an 80 per cent discount on the list price and they ask me how much I want added onto the quote so I can make my fitting price look good. Much prefer benchmarx, more transparent to deal with. |  | | |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:30 - Jul 23 with 18770 views | Harry_Palmer |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:17 - Jul 23 by budgiebasher |
Thank you - my concern re diy-kitchens.com would be about the quality of the kitchen and the time that it would take to get missing parts / replacements for damaged parts. One of the reasons our builders like Howdens is that they can get these on next day delivery |
All of my research concluded that the quality of their kitchens was superior to that of the other two.
My builder too was concerned re. the time for replacement parts, but I was assured they would get them out within 24 hours. I guess it depends on how much you can save and the trade off against any of the concerns you may have.
For me the difference in price is over 2k and that is worth taking a slight risk for.
I Agree with the others about avoiding Lamona appliances, not heard good things. Good luck. | | | |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:37 - Jul 23 with 18742 views | budgiebasher |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:30 - Jul 23 by Harry_Palmer |
All of my research concluded that the quality of their kitchens was superior to that of the other two.
My builder too was concerned re. the time for replacement parts, but I was assured they would get them out within 24 hours. I guess it depends on how much you can save and the trade off against any of the concerns you may have.
For me the difference in price is over 2k and that is worth taking a slight risk for.
I Agree with the others about avoiding Lamona appliances, not heard good things. Good luck. |
Thanks HP - good to know. I like their website and will definitely look into this option further. That is a big saving | |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 08:23 - Jul 24 with 18526 views | itfcjoe |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:19 - Jul 23 by Deano69 |
Yes, go next door to Benchmarx, we got a better kitchen and a better deal.
Oh, and never, never, ever buy one from Wren [Post edited 23 Jul 2018 22:21]
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We've fitted a load of Wren Kitchens, and never had any issues with them |  |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 09:02 - Jul 24 with 18478 views | LancsBlue |
We bought a Howdens kitchen via a fitter. When it came it didn't fit properly. The fitter claimed Howdens had measured it wrongly and Howdens claimed that the fitter had assembled it incorrectly. We were left with a 'fitted kitchen' that stopped six inches short of the wall! In the end we had to take legal advice. We withheld payment from the fitter, who in turn had to take legal action against Howdens. Howdens, after months of denials, accepted responsibility and offered us £100 compensation! In the end we boarded off the gap and put a wine rack in. We finally accepted £1000 compensation on a £4000 kitchen. The kitchen itself is great but Howdens are not a nice company to deal with when things go wrong. |  |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 11:14 - Jul 24 with 18410 views | dhickl |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 09:02 - Jul 24 by LancsBlue |
We bought a Howdens kitchen via a fitter. When it came it didn't fit properly. The fitter claimed Howdens had measured it wrongly and Howdens claimed that the fitter had assembled it incorrectly. We were left with a 'fitted kitchen' that stopped six inches short of the wall! In the end we had to take legal advice. We withheld payment from the fitter, who in turn had to take legal action against Howdens. Howdens, after months of denials, accepted responsibility and offered us £100 compensation! In the end we boarded off the gap and put a wine rack in. We finally accepted £1000 compensation on a £4000 kitchen. The kitchen itself is great but Howdens are not a nice company to deal with when things go wrong. |
I have bought from Howdens, having previously bought stuff from there. The quality is much better than the likes of Wren, but you pay a bit more.
However, as others have said - their pricing is ridiculous. They offer you something for £500 saying that is a 70% discount (Does 1 kitchen cabinet really cost £1,600????)
Anyway, I had the designer round, once I got it as I liked I negotiated on the price. I set what I wanted to spend, and sat down and told them - it was less than half their quote. It involved me changing one or two of the items to a lower cost (i.e. not a granite worktop), but then the rest of the reductions came from increasing the discount (90% discount on everything) and getting a couple of the accessories thrown in.
In the end I managed to get a good quality kitchen within my budget, and what I feel is a reasonable price. So my advice is to negotiate, tell them the price you are willing to spend and work with them to get it to the right price. | | | |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 11:21 - Jul 24 with 18402 views | TractorJack |
Managed to get trade price through a family member, during the sale period too. Also bought the oak worktop/upstand separately online as it was much cheaper. |  | | |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 13:05 - Jul 24 with 18346 views | budgiebasher |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 22:30 - Jul 23 by blustutu |
I use Howdens (I’m a carpenter) and their products are pretty good but their pricing is ridiculous. I get an 80 per cent discount on the list price and they ask me how much I want added onto the quote so I can make my fitting price look good. Much prefer benchmarx, more transparent to deal with. |
That's unbelievable - I suspected that the builders must be getting a good cut of the price as they seem very keen that we go with Howdens - it puts me off Howdens tbh
Do you know where can you find the list prices? All the pricing has been completely opaque so far | |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 13:27 - Jul 24 with 18316 views | itfcjoe |
| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 13:05 - Jul 24 by budgiebasher |
That's unbelievable - I suspected that the builders must be getting a good cut of the price as they seem very keen that we go with Howdens - it puts me off Howdens tbh
Do you know where can you find the list prices? All the pricing has been completely opaque so far |
The list pricing is ridiculous - I've got a random invoice in front of me here for some doors
2 ply glazed doors - 60% discount - £109.99ea
1 ply door - 73.69% - 24.99
So those doors would be full price £275 and £95 respectively.
From my experience, most builders will just put a standard markup on the price and let you see the actual costs - somewhere between 10 and 15% | |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 13:46 - Jul 24 with 18287 views | hampstead_blue |
I would say my tip on Howdens is NOT to buy from them.
We had a kitchen in one of our BTL's from them. Spent good money. It was awful. Poor quality all round.
We are using DIY kitchens in Manchester in the future. About to buy six kitchens. Our contractor suggested Howdens and we laughed.
So much cheaper and if you already have a plan you can buy each piece you need. |  |
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| Help with buying a kitchen from Howdens please on 13:54 - Jul 24 with 18271 views | WD19 |
My tip would be to go to Wren. |  | | |
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