To not buy new kitchen over a tap

[Kubricklayer]

DW and I are close to pulling the trigger on a £30K kitchen. Spent last month back and forth agreeing specifics.

A few days ago DW saw on their FB page a deal for new customers in Feb to get a free £1K Quooker tap if they spend min £15K on a kitchen.

We then sent an email to chase up our kitchen stuff and asked if we’d get the tap since the sale will likely go through in Feb.

They said it’s for new inquiries and as we inquired late Dec we wouldn’t qualify for the tap.

At this point in time we’ve not paid a deposit, or signed anything and they’ve spent significant time designing our kitchen. All that effort will be for nothing if we decide to walk away.

Surely it’d be worth throwing this tap in so not to risk losing the sale? I’m not fussed about the tap tbh but part of me is a bit annoyed because we’re spending over double the money needed to qualify for the free tap and the sale will now be finalised in Feb, the qualifying month.

would you push back and insist on getting the tap if you were in my position?

Tell the current company that you are looking at other quotes. They're not budging because they think that you won't walk away. If they see a chance of not hitting targets because you've pulled out and the salespeople could lose their chance of a bonus, they may try a bit harder.

Also insist on a copy of the design. It's ridiculous that they want you to commit to paying all this money without a very clear idea of what you're paying for.

They’re being ridiculous. Surely it’s more important when you actually place the order not when you make the enquiry. What does the small print on the offer say? They’re probably telling new enquiries that they will get the tap if they place the order in February.

Personally no, I'd leave it, then if they get the offer on again, go through the whole process again, lol! Sounds like a major store if cannot override their machines to give you the tap like an independent company would? It's not an unreasonable request on a £30k kitchen anyway, even if the offer has finished and you sound cheeky.

I went to Wren kitchens a few years ago, priced up a tiny tiny kitchen. Picked out all the cheap worktops I wanted and none of their maths worked out. I asked them a few times to explain the pricing (we worked out the whole cost pretty much before hand, £7k, they quoted 14k). They kept changing the subject and refused to explain it all. We just walked. Large retailers are a money making machine, that's what they're there to do, maximise profits and quite often their cupboards are wrapped badly anyway and they will peel fairly quickly.

They’re being ridiculous. Surely it’s more important when you actually place the order not when you make the enquiry. What does the small print on the offer say? They’re probably telling new enquiries that they will get the tap if they place the order in February.

Having spent years working in business roles where I know the 'true' cost of things to businesses, the key part that stuck out to me is you said they won't provide any real breakdown of costs.
That would be a hard no from me, just my personal preference though.
You've no idea what your really paying for, you should know how much your worktops cost for example, how can you swap things to cheaper options if you don't know what costs what in the first place?
How do you know they aren't charging you 25% more for your sink than you could buy direct? Of course you should expect you can buy all materials yourself for less, as business is business and a concierge charge is more than acceptable but only up to a certain percentage.
You are likely correct in that if the sale goes through in February it can include their February deal on the tap because of how accounts are generally processed. I've worked in several industries and all of them class a customer as a NEW customer until someone has signed on the dotted line or paid something.

The fact they aren't willing to do that, how hard have you actually pushed it? They may have just said a bog standard no first off but aren't aware they could lose the sale.

Also thinking more long term, you might not be bothered about the tap but it could add a selling feature to your house should you ever wish/need to sell and could be the most practical thing you didn't know you needed!

I'm overall a big fan of German engineering/products but that doesn't mean you should throw 30K at them!
Plus you should always, always get a minimum of 3 quotes for a large house purchase like this. Not just because of the cost, but the warranty, post sales customer support, the quality of the fixtures and fittings, how long have they been trading? Those kinds of things matter too. If they aren't flexible with their approach before you spend a penny, they will most likely not be once you do.

Are you struggling to read? They haven't placed an order, they made an initial enquiry...

Personally, I would threaten to walk away. This normally focuses the mind. Do they really want to miss out on £30k for the sake of the tap?

Agree with all of this - especially loving my Quooker tap too!

I was about to ask the same thing

I would email the MD. If the response is no free tap I would 100% walk away.

It's the attitude rather than the lack of a specific freebie that would leave a sour taste in my mouth. It may be that they have enough business they can afford for a handful of customers to go elsewhere in these situations. If you haven't been able to negotiate on price, take your specs and quote to another company and ask what they can do for you. Then take their spec and price to a third company and ask what they can do to match or better it.

Depends if you have a different offer eg free dishwasher or whatever

Perfect opportunity to simply look elsewhere

It's more than tap.as op said.

I wish I was more like you, OP. I tend to just roll over and say "Here, take all my money and a bit more for your trouble" for things I'm not even sure about! 🤡

You have plenty of leeway here, I think you'll kick yourself if you don't do something to grab that extra prize 🤩 You'll always be walking into your lovely new German kitchen and looking for the missing tap!

Good luck!

I can comment as someone who (until very recently) owned a small business, for 25 years.

My first thought was about the level of seniority of the person who told you the tap offer (whether you want the bloody thing or not!) was for new enquiries only. They may not have the authority to authorise any extra discount without referring further up the chain of command, so to speak. It may be worth asking to refer further up, but you may have already done so. The initial refusal may have been a stock answer.

We were a small company that could not always compete on price with the larger ones within our industry. What we could sell was the knowledge, quality of service and in particular after care that we prided our reputation on - we were definitely not the cheapest but we were excellent at what we did, I’m not sure how you’d check that within the kitchen installation business but I am sure you can! Then it depends on your priorities, price or quality.

We’d also expect to have negotiable margin within the job - that’s a given. Small company or not.

It’s probably worth trying to negotiate a little, even if it’s not the tap. Then taking a little time, depending on the response. You really should get other quotes, maybe different companies with different approaches. Let the original company come back to you after you’ve negotiated and then told them you’ll be taking time to reflect. You’ll very probably be able to negotiate something.

Good luck

Get a different cheaper tap. Intu are fantastico

We did a similar size kitchen with island to yours 5 years back and the builders fitting it suggested tweaks that kept costs down ...switched out some of the appliances and bought them direct etc. Had a Quooker tap installed as they advised it, wasn't that bothered but now I love it and wouldn't be without it.

I know it's "just s tap" but it would stick in my craw that they wouldn't throw it in for the sake of a week or so.
We went to Wrens and Magnet for our new kitchen, then went to b&q (same Shaker products) and saved thousands.
I love it, new island and all

I’ve just had a kitchen done by a one man outfit. Because he is competent, careful and highly recommended. I would not ever trust a company like the one you describe. Years ago in my previous house, I bought a kitchen from a well known kitchen company - they send a sales person to your house and then fitting is arranged. It was awful. They had different contractors rip it out, then said the fitters were “delayed”. I had a giant junk pile, no kitchen and a 6 month old baby. When I called the sales person he said he could lose his job for even speaking to me about the matter!!!!!!!!
never trust these companies.
word of mouth local recommendations only. Not Nextdoor, not checkatrade, only people personally known to you

Be careful you’re not “cutting your nose off to spite your face” A friend had one of these taps in their kitchen and say it was a complete waste of money 🤷‍♀️

Yes I’m petty af with stuff like this. If they want to lose £30k over a grand let them get on with it but make sure HQ of the company know too.

Except they haven't put the order in yet. It's still in discussion

I think you are mad not to be getting more quotes for spending 30k.
Also a friend mentioned she adores her hot tap, so handy in her new kitchen.

I'd not go with original vendors on principle, but I also wouldn't want a Quooker. Silly fad that's pointless.

Me too! @Mummylove2026 - they've been deleted on another thread too on a completely different topic . They must be particularly awful comments given the comments I've witnessed in US threads that have got through recently!