Should I dump Wren Kitchens

[Maidenmum]

We have had a kitchen planned out by Wren but it seems like we could get similar quality at about 2/3 of the price from DIY Kitchens or Ikea.

My husband isn't sure that we should leave Wren but it seems like a big difference in money for little to no quality difference.

Has anyone used any ofbthese company's who can confirm who I should go with?

AIBU to dump Wren ?

Any kitchen fitter who couldn't manage to fit an IKEA kitchen (easily doable for any halfway competent DIY'er) is not someone I'd trust to fit a kitchen

We had our DIY Kitchens kitchen installed in June. It's lovely, and excellent quality.

We didn't get quotes from Wren, but from an independent company, Wickes (which is flat packed, and therefore takes longer to fit, as they have to build them before fitting) and Howdens (x2 quotes). They were all between £26,000 and £33,000, including fitting and worktops, but not including appliances.

DIY Kitchens was £16,000 for the kitchen units and that included eight AEG appliances. Then we paid £3,500 for quartz worktops and paid an independent fitter £2,500 to install it. For our own peace of mind, we also got an independent kitchen designer to check over our plans as we had building work done and were aware that with kitchens, millimeters matter. I think we paid him about £350. DIY-Kitchens are ready-assembled, apart from our corner walk-in larder, which would never had got through the door if it had been pre-built!

We had 86 items on our delivery. Two items were not sent on the delivery as they hadn't passed quality control, but other than that (and they were delivered very quickly) we had no issues with our kitchen. There are numerous groups sharing horrendous tales of their experiences with Wren.

Watch this video by Nick Morris. He compares on a like for like basis, kitchens from Wren, Wickes, Howdens, Magnet and DIY-Kitchens. It was his video that made me go with DIY. There is a Facebook group - DIY Kitchens - Design and Planning Forum and Finished Kitchen Reviews- UK - where people share inspiration, ideas and will critique your designs.

I'm still having problems with wren 18 months after they 'fitted' my kitchen. It's been an absolute nightmare. My cousin used Howdens around the same time and hasn't had a problem at all, if anything they went above and beyond. All that to say I wouldn't use wren.

I’ve recently had a Wren fitted kitchen. I love it and have had nothing but a good experiences. That was supply only though. They wanted £7,000 to fit it. I got someone we know to do it for £3,000, and that included all electrical work, plumbing, plastering. Just avoid their fitters, their products are great.

Wren has awful reviews and I've seen some shockers on Tiktok too. Avoid!

My brother had a dreadful experience with wren and on the flip side we did an install for mum from diy kitchen and they were excellent

I love our wren kitchen. However, the fitter they supplied was shite. We’ve since had to employ another builder to finish off the kitchen at considerable extra cost. I wouldn’t use them again tbh. Our kitchen plus additional costs came in at around 28k. It’s cost us another 6k in costs to put things right.

Also, don’t get your flooring from wren. That was crap too!

Are DIY kitchens from B&Q?

I regret having Wren fit our kitchen. The staff they employ are not ethical and professional. Once the order is placed and deposit paid they will not provide a fair and reasonable service. If you use Facebook search for the Wren kitchen experiences page. They employ cowboys who cannot even produce public liability insurance certificates. They left our kitchen in a dangerous state after the contractor tried to financially blackmail us and Wren forced us to continue with that contractor. Then removed the tiles from the wall without authorisation.

I had a good experience with Wren but I had my own kitchen fitter. He said he would not fit Howdens.

No they have 12 state of the art facilities across Yorkshire that they manufacture their own. Their units come pre built and are amazing quality compared to B&Q.

We bought ours last year after following all the reviews and visiting their showroom,they put all others to shame. The quality is brilliant.

I'd dump them, I unfortunately bought from them, they were utter shite

I’ve bought a few kitchens over the years.
The B&Q kitchen was very cheap. Less the £1k with oven sink and taps but awful quality. I had a good joiner so it looked good.
Gower Rapide are low in price but decent quality. The range is limited though. If you’re on a tight budget these are the ones to go for. Can get a decent amount of units for a couple of thousand.
On my second symphony kitchen from MKM. Went up a price range to get the colour of doors I really wanted. Base units come assembled. Excellent choice and quality. Last time I just went for the lowest range as I was moving but it was still a good quality kitchen.

We had a terrible experience with Wren - unbelievably stressful and ended up getting almost a grand back because their fitter was so dreadful. Avoid at all costs!

Our DIY kitchen was fitted in February and our builders/kitchen fitter were very impressed with the quality. Came ready built not flat packed and was so much cheaper than the equivalent in wren. We're talking £20k + different.

Friends currently having wren fitted and their fitters are terrible and don't have a clue.

We’ve just had a Wren kitchen fitted in August. Everything was on time and the fitter was excellent. We’re happy with it.

My colleague at work had a Wren kitchen just before us and is also happy with it.

My neighbours have got a DIY kitchen and it’s also fine.

I think it mostly depends on whether you can get a good fitter. And always pay the deposit by credit card to cover you in case anything goes wrong.

I used to work as a kitchen planner for IKEA. The kitchens were good value and wellmade. Independent fitters had a prejudice against them due to the small amount of utilities space at the back of the units - I don't know if this has changed in the intervening years. The kitchen in my own house is from Howdens; it was here when I moved in 6 years ago and has been troublefree and looks good.

We used Howdens. The only issues were caused by the fitter, not Howdens. In fact we have had two new kitchens from Howdens over the last 8 years. One in a previous house and one where we are now.

If I live long enough to need another one they would be my first port of call

We bought a house a few years ago with a Wren kitchen relatively recently fitted. It looked good when we moved in. We have 3DC and are pretty hard on kitchens and it's not coped at all. We've had 2 doors fall off, and lots of the doors now have cracks in the gloss coating and all the doors and drawers are shoogly. It's 10 years old now but is in worse nick than my cousins kitchen which is a 20yo IKEA kitchen. A kitchen should last a lifetime. My next kitchen will be a plywood kitchen.

I've just had a DIY kitchen installed. It wasn't flat pack. I've gone for j-pill handleless, and I think DIY doors had a little more finger room in the groove to open them. I understand Wren kitchens might be slightly deeper, but my wall units are fine and deep enough for plates. If you go for DIY I think you need to design it yourself on their online planner. They check it (online) before you buy. You've also got to pay upfront for DIY. The most important thing would be to find a reputable kitchen fitter (unless you're doing it yourself), and get them to come out and check things before giving you a price.

I have a relative who fits kitchens. He is not impressed with the quality of Wren and would not recommend them.

Ah, thank you. I'm in Wales so nowhere near Yorkshire unfortunately.

DIY kitchens scores very highly across the board. It's top end of the usual brands. Have a look on comparisons on YouTube.

They have just launched their 10% off today. Delivery from mid January.

Units are all ready built and high standard.

We just had a wren kitchen fitted last month. It’s beautiful. Everything went smoothly. Very happy with the service and result. I can’t stop looking at it