Wren kitchens. Yes? No? Good? Bad?

[TheOneAndOnlyAlpha]

That's it really. Has anyone had one fitted. It's either that or magnet. Any opinions would be fab. Thanks!

Wren's kitchens are a laugh. We are just at the end of getting one fitted. There was a missing door, one we had to get replaced due to damage - problems with pelmets which break whenever you are cutting them. And I can go on.
Wren did provide the missing door, plus replaced the damaged one. However, they insisted that I buy all new pelmets despite the fact that there was a flaw in the ones I received and I have a 20 yr guarantee which is worthless.
Customer Services were extremely rude - to the point of putting the phone down on me when I insisted they replaced the flawed pelmets, which they were adamant were painted despite the fact that they had been covered in a sprayed on plastic coating, not painted - even intimating that I did not have Wren's products.
I would tell everyone to stay away from the company as once they have your money, you are on your own.

Well my experience today. Good builder fitter said measurement wrong, so kitchen doesn't fit Surveyor cocked up measurements. Ok, a problem, let's find a solution. Ring the designer I used, completely uninterested, think cos it meant ditching three of their units. He came up with a solution that was hitch pitch. I asked to come in to rejig and he put barriers up. Got the impression don't care now they have sold me a kitchen.

i worked for wren kitchens until yesterday as a driver the company is a joke kitchens made from total rubbish so anyone who reads this just be warned don't buy from them customers services rubbish and treat staff like crap management is a joke

How disappointing that this thread has been rumbling on for years and Wren haven't improved!
I was about to order £15k worth of kitchen from them but now will go to Benchmarx who are local and have good stock in their warehouse.
Shame these companies can't see how they are damaging themselves what with the interweb allowing everyone to share experiences and issues!

There are a lot more manufacturers than 3.

Well done mumsnet. I was going in to see them tomorrow, I had cut out an advert from a paper in January of a lovely design of theirs but the building work wasn't progressed to a point where I was ready to buy, so I've been looking at that picture for three months thinking that was going to be my new kitchen....having read this thread I'm starting again from scratch. for everyone who has taken the time to post

Here's our review from our recent order with Wren (order 25761736)

TL:DR
Reasonable chance you'll get an OK kitchen, but cosmetically tatty

Summary
I can’t in good consciousness recommend Wren. Ready assembled cabinets are not worth paying for if self-fitting, due to Wren's assembly defects/mistakes and fact that ~60% of effort lies in fitting the extras (attaching metal brackets, legs, handles etc.). Flatpack cabinets from DIY superstore are cheaper, have no assembly mistakes and can be easily substituted the same day if there’s a problem.

Review In Detail
Planning 5* - Innovative plans cover every smallest detail
Delivery 5* - Careful and considerate in our experience
Build quality 4* - Sturdy furniture. Looks like it will last functionally
Quality control 2* - Expect factory seconds; Lots of minor defects and mistakes result in a tatty finish. QC stamps are slapped on, right next to defects! Seems they’ll wave anything through.
Customer services 2* - Polite words, but actions condone the shocking quality control.
Prices 3* - Relatively affordable, but don’t expect to get what you paid for. Good offers on appliances are worth taking, but avoid the overpriced extras (Handles £8 vs £1 for exact the same part on online auction site. Taps ~£180 vs £40 for similar style/quality online. Laminate worktops x2 price of equivalent from local DIY superstores).
Fitting service – Not used

We are in 2 minds to get a kitchen from wren ..Went to showroom and they are lovely kitchens and the staff also know their product.We are booked in next week just to see price etc as they currently have 50% off.I said to the salesman that i have read customer service is not great and it is obviously a worry if something is delivered damaged/wrong.For every happy customer there are 10 unhappy ( from what I've read ) He showed me the reviews on trust pilot etc etc ,but i think deep down I should stick with Howdens ..My builder would get 70% off and pass that directly on to us so that's the way to go i think ..Shame as they are lovely looking kitchens....But i don't need the headache ..Howdens is only down the road as well

We had a wren kitchen fitted March 2016. It's gorgeous. Everything was as it should be and there was even excess worktop so our carpenter created a large chopping board and upstands out of it. We had our own carpenter fit it but the quality is lovely - not had a single bad word about it.

Genuinely really chuffed with it.

Really am not sure what to do ..The positives reviews are really positive ..

Terrible IME. Wouldn't use them again. My old Howdens kitchen was 100 times better quality. Annoyed that I got sucked in tbh.

Susancanning
I wouldn't touch Magnet with a barge pole. Their after sales service was abysmal. I was crying down the phone to the Customer Service agent.

Wren kitchens, what is your experience?
Buying a wren kitchen has been our worst purchase, Wren showrooms and staff over promise and Wren under deliver, they do not honor agreements, Wren charge an additional £3,500 to project manage our kitchen but we have no seen or spoken to this project team since commencement of the work. We chose to have Wren installation, you have no control as who carries out the work, we asked for the kitchen to be plastered before the new kitchen was installed, did not happen it was plastered after, a plumber who fixed a tap with only one screw and left thinking that is was satisfactory, this same plumber came three times before the kitchen sink was plumbed in, we had no sink for three weeks this included the bank holidays, the tiler was paid to level the floor, then laid the tiles with half an inch cement underneath now the back door which is upvc will not open due to the height, he then laid the tiles 50 50 brick which is incorrect for the size of tile that we had, the kitchen furniture wobbled, he said he was to busy to take them up for three weeks, so they have to be broken up to remove them this has been left in our garden for us to remove 22 square metres and then he wanted to lay new tiles on the 1/2 cement whilst already there were problems with the door that he could not fix. This has cost us an additional £2,500 taking up tiles that are weeks old, purchasing more and paying again for them to be laid. I have not had a working kitchen since April, I have complained to the chief exec Andrew Hayley, who is disinterested we have been told by Wren to go to the ombudsmen. This is The Chester area where we live. It is bank holiday weekend do not be tempted buying from Wren.

I am due to have my Wren kitchen delivered on Saturday and dreading it. Have read so many horror stories that I have lost confidence in them.

Spotted an error on our plans and called them twice in two days and been promised someone would call back, and of course no one has called.

Spent just under 20k and they don't seem to care

We are having a Wren kitchen fitted right now - or rather, not being fitted. The quality of the units seems good, the price was okay I think - although difficult to compare exact like with like.
The fitting service is letting them down.
We chose to use Wren as we didn't know a local fitter, but what a mistake. Wren quoted £2500 then reduced this to £2000. Their sub-contracter (they don't actually do it themselves) is being paid £1000.
Not everything turned up at the same time. The fitters did 90% of the job and haven't been back. The customer service at Wren keeps promising to sort it out and doesn't. You chase, they say they will get back to you, they don't.
We have now told them that we will have to find someone ourselves to finish the job and then claim the costs back from Wren. They haven't even responded.
I can see this ending up in court via the small claims procedure. This is a pain when we have so much else to do on a house renovation and a limited budget.
DON'T use Wren to fit your kitchen. Find a good local firm and take their advice on supply and fit - it will be less of a headache and probably cheaper.

Beady - I am in the same boat. The fitters have disappeared and haven't returned. We haven't got a working oven, job, sink, fridge, washing machine or dishwasher. All of the appliances are stacked up in my lounge but there is no one to fit them. We are waiting on other parts too but I just want some appliances to work with.

We have paid over £4K for the fitting but have been without fitters for over a week now.

I have been on the phone every day trying to sort it out and Wren say they are looking for an alternative fitter but nothing yet.

I am beyond pissed off with them.

If anyone is considering using Wren, please bear this in mind!

DON'T USE WREN.........there I've said it out loud. What a shower. Who fell for "the family firm who care" message? Great in the design stage then a disaster of monumental proportions. Yes, like everyone else bad design; sink too close to hob. Surveyor did not measure the work top that was in place. If he had he would have seen that it was deeper for a reason; all the service pipes run behind the bottom cupboards so they need to be seated further forward. The list is so long... customer services are a joke. What a misnamed collection of unhelpful women. I will be writing to the owner (who is a mega-millionaire and won't give a dam). The best way to hit back is to stop people buying from them. I have already got someone to cancel their kitchen appointment. They are going to Howdens instead.

I agree with previous critical comments. We are having a nightmare with them

We had a cashmere handleless gloss kitchen from Wren installed about 2 years ago, with a shiny, speckled black worktop. Biggest mistake ever. Terrible customer service and after sales, the worktop has gone all lumpy, white and bobbley next to the sink (where it has been wet), which, for a kitchen worktop is ridiculous. The gloss coating off the doors chips and scratches so easily and half of the soft close fittings on the doors have failed. Also, the tap failed so would not turn off - still under warranty but Wren just sent me a link to B&Q website with the new parts they expected me to buy. Would never buy from them again, despite the great in store service and pretty kitchens in the store.

wren kitchens
i got a wren kitchen fitted and the customer service is shicking we have been chasing them to carry out the remedial work for 16 months getting totally ignored dont get a kitchen from this company they get paid but dont come back to fix flaws in their product

I took this company to court to recover over £2k of inflated/unrequired items from my original purchase price of £12k! It is the only way to go with them. They will not send representation and the judge will rule in your favour if you have presented your case well.

Spent hours with a so called designer last week. Absolutely useless. The design he initially came up with had no logic and he didn't seem to know how to use the software. I had no confidence in him. Only interested in trying to get us to buy there and then. We have got a better deal from a local independent who does bespoke German kitchens with Siemens appliances and quartz worktops.

I wouldn't recommend Wren at all. They were just featured on Rip Off Britain a few weeks ago & there is a hole community on facebook called Wren Kithen Disasters (that has just been shut down by Wren) it was home to 3,000 unhappy wren customers all sharing images & stories of their nightmare experiences that are all unresolved. They sell a dream but they can't seem to be able to produce it. Some people have been having their kitchens fitted from 6 months to 4 years & they are still incomplete; & every time they try to get in touch with Wren online they have been blocked & their comments deleted. They're just impossible to deal with. You may be happy with the low price but you will also get low quality & low customer service standards in return.

To get the most out of your money you should go & see a local independent before you make a final decision, just to compare at least. They're not as expensive as you might think & will work towards your budget too. You'll get better service & a better overall experience.