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!

Sent a message to their customer services over the w/e! Looking forward to receiving contact from a warranty claims manager! 😉

They are an absolute disgrace of a company. Glad this thread is ongoing in the hope it deters any unsuspecting MN’s from wasting their time and money with them.

Our Wren experience: We had initially decided on an Ikea kitchen but our fitter would not install anything Ikea so we went to Wren. They matched the Ikea price and were very patient during the finalising process as we changed our mind many times. We placed an order and they delivered the kitchen in 10 days which we were very pleased about. Nothing was missing. Only one drawer was slightly chipped. It wasn't problem at all to get a replacement which came within one week. We have had the kitchen around one month now and it looks great and everything works as it should. We can only on our experience recommend them...

Congrats on your result Wren Kitchens. 10 days to delivery seems to go against the order to manufacture period of min 6 weeks.

Thank you.
It was the flat pack range...hence the short delivery period I guess.

Ver, you obviously got off very lightly compared to most people who use them.

Their social media profile is managed aggressively with many disgruntled customers having their comments deleted and profiles blocked on Facebook and Twitter. Trustpilot reviews that are negative are reported and taken down on a whim until customers can prove they bought from them. They only ask customers who they deem to have a good experience to post on Trustpilot and pay them for doing so.

The fact that they featured on Rip Off Britain only a few weeks ago speaks volumes.

It’s their “bespoke” ranges that gives them the opportunity to use “smoke and mirrors” on the pricing. An indi kitchen fitter that I spoke to recently said that many of his clients have been put off Wren because they have not been able to fathom the detail of what they are paying for!

When I get more time I will give you examples from my own experience

Oh lordy. Have just cancelled a Wren order because of this thread. Thank you all for posting and helping me dodge a bullet!

Update on my experience with customer services regarding my warantee claim. Having made the claim and sent video and picture of the problem they responded promptly with a confirmation that the items had been scheduled for delivery today! Guess what? They have not been delivered today! Will post further .................

I really hope this message hasn't got to you too late!
DO NOT USE WREN KITCHENS!! you are totally sold by their lovely showroom, once you have paid them, in full and before the work begins the true WREN appears. Hopeless underpaid fitters and head office staff that obviously would rather be anywhere than helping you sort out any kitchen problems that you defiantly will have!

I have been waiting for months for them to finish my kitchen, day after day having to wait at home for them to deliver then wait again for them to fit. No apology, no refunds, no urgency - a complete nightmare!

I wish i had listened to the blogs i had read... Magnet or Roses kitchens get the thumbs up, please try them but not WREN!!

Good luck with your knew kitchen i hope its wonderful! :-)

Today, warantee items arrived and satis! Happy days!

I have successfully sued Wrens!
Be very aware of this company. Do not let the glitzy showrooms fool you. Behind the scenes is an organisation in chaos. Customer service is virtually non-existent. If you have to complain you will be asked to write to a rather fanciful sounding complaints department called the “Directors Office” – where there are no Directors of course. Quality of their products is mediocre at best and the quality of the running gear on drawers and pull out units will simply not stand the test of time.
I purchased a Linda Barker kitchen from the Bristol store and was promised a week to install. A year later the installation was still incomplete. We had everything thrown at us – incorrect measurements, wrong items, damaged items, unskilled fitters, poor installation and worst of all zero response from Wrens. You name it we suffered it. There is far too much detail to explain everything except to say earlier this year I ultimately decided to take them to court under the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982. As you can imagine they were not best pleased and their solicitors threw every word of small print in the contract to deny liability and responsibility. Their constant intimidation tactics did not phase me in the slightest but made me even more determined as I knew they were in clear breach of the Supply of Goods and Services Act and the Sale of Goods Act.
On the day of the court hearing they had appointed some high-flying barrister who again decided to intimidate me into settling for a ridiculously low compensation figure which I refused. The judge was clearly not impressed with Wrens and issued them with a CCJ. The Judge found Wrens to have acted in breach of the term (implied under the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982) in failing to provide a service, namely the fitting of a kitchen, with the necessary care and skill required and within a reasonable time frame and failing to demonstrate a duty of care. Wrens were also found guilty under Sales of Goods for supply of poor quality of materials. The Judge proceeded to award me well in excess of a thousand pounds in compensation.
If Wrens have failed you, do not be afraid to take legal action. This is a truly vile organisation.
Some advice and warning to anyone still thinking of buying their dream kitchen from Wrens. Firstly, DON’T, go elsewhere! Secondly, if you really have been taken in by their sales patter then beware they will not entertain any complaints until you have signed the completion certificate (where you have used their fitters). The minute you sign the completion certificate, your finance agreement will commence (if you have bought on finance) and Wrens will receive full payment from Barclays. From that point onwards, you are on your own. Good luck with resolving any complaints. You have been warned. DO NOT under any circumstances sign the completion certificate or anything unless you are 100% satisfied and make sure you read ALL the small print BEFORE you enter into the agreement.

Friend had a wren kitchen fixed. I wasn't impressed. There were snags - cooker didn't work, finish of the fitting etc. and it wasn't cheap. The kitchen looks nice but for that sort of money it should be perfect. I think the fitter was from wren but I'm not sure.

I can’t comment on quality of wren Kitchens yet my dad is due to have one fitted soon but I’ve also just had a new kitchen from howdens very impressed I paid a local joiner to fit ours my dad has paid wren to fit his I’ve paid half the price he has and my kitchen is 3 times the size so have to say really not impressed at fitting costs!

I'd recommend people actively avoid Wren! I went to their showroom at Staples Corner the other day. After about 1 1/2 hours of the girl wittering on I (finally!) recognised "the script" of someone who's been taught to con you. The girl was literally never going to design the kitchen I wanted, nor be straightforward about the prices of any individual units. Lo and behold, after I'd been sitting there "chatting with her" for about 2 hours she started with the blatant hard sell tactics, like saying if I gave a deposit on the spot she'd reserve a special discount for me which would be unavailable if I didn't put down a deposit. She did a terrible design with loads of wasted space, and you could see briefly as she flicked through the stuff she was throwing into "my" plan that the price of each unit was extortionate compared to B&Q, Wickes, IKEA etc - even though there was a big sign there saying how Wren were much cheaper. These people are con artists.

Eventually I managed to end the session after about 2 1/2 hours and escape. The lovely fresh air around Staples Corner has never felt so lovely. ;-)

It is perhaps worth popping in for a look round as on the ground floor at the back they have a section which claims to be the comparable units from Magnets, B&Q, Howdens etc and theirs assembled. They were nigh on identical apart from the placement of a few bits of MDF here and there, which could be a useful thing to look at in some circumstances. Do not, however, bother to speak to them!

Do NOT go to Wren Kitchens. I am still waiting for my kitchen - it should have been here last June. And if you do, DO NOT sign the buy now pay later finance deal.

They hood wink you into signing a buy now pay later scheme that makes you think you haven't paid them - you have. Yes, I should have read the small print more carefully but you are sold this in a completely dishonest way. So last June, Barclays paid Wren their money and now in February I am awaiting my seventh delivery (could be more, I've actually lost count).

They took about 4 goes to get the whole kitchen here then when we started to open up the boxes the defective doors appeared. Their packaging leaves marks on any dark doors, we have been sent the wrong colour doors, we have been sent bowed doors and there are scratches and chipped paint.

They are impossible to communicate with and will lie to you. The Reading Showroom that we bought from are all 'in meetings' whenever I telephone. They have never apologised for anything. Until you start emailing the CEO you will not get a reply to anything. Even now that I have some communication the answers are not what you'd expect from a company who are trying solve a problem.

I'll let you know what happens after what should be my final delivery on Friday... and will they reimburse me for the refitting of the kitchen? (I had to install the one with defective doors so that I actually had a kitchen). And will they offer any compensation for the nightmare that they have caused? I have three small children, a job and a house renovation project. I don't have the time or energy for this.

Do NOT go to Wren Kitchens. My last one was from Howdens and was great.

This is so helpful. Booked a measuring with wrens which I will now cancel.

I agree with somany of other posters. Don't touch them with a barge pole. Some of it was fine and the units are good quality but the pelmets don't properly match and it ruins the whole look.

As others have said, the complaints process is ridiculous, over complicated and infuriating. We kept being put off but thankfully had a solicitor friend who helped. We got a refund of several thousand against the cost of the kitchen in the end, but we certainly had to work for it.

I would also say steer clear of wren! The kitchens look nice and the prices are good but you get what you pay for. Awful customer service. Wrong items repeatedly delivered. They just can’t get it right! The result is a half fitted kitchen and no assurances that the right parts will be delivered until June!!!!!
The most frustrating thing is they just don’t care. They can’t even get themselves together to deliver the right parts as a matter of urgency! They are incompetent and it causes so much stress!!

I've just read this thread. I had a design appointment with a kitchen consultant yesterday... I was fairly unimpressed with him anyway as I ended up doing the designing whilst he just clicked the computer. There was nothing innovative or inspirational in the one design he did come up with... in fact it was the exact same layout as we currently have. And he'd seen pictures of our current kitchen anyway. I equally wasn't convinced with some of his suggestions including moving a window 6 inches to the left if possible😂 yeah I'll get a window moved to fit your average design.
Bullet dodged.... we will go elsewhere.

If you like the wren units but not the lack of pricing transparency then go to Joinery Depot and use your own fitters. Joinery Depot are the trade arm of wren, but also sell direct to the public. The store manager at joinery depot was able to access the wren design we had drawn up in the showroom on his computer, then price the exact units with a detailed price list with every item individually priced so we could see where savings could be made. Joinery depot recommended a couple of local fitters who gave us an installation price based on the paper plans.
We got a wren kitchen for much less than going via wren, and a professional joiner who took real pride in his work. If you go for one of their in- stock ranges the delivery period can be as little as 7 days from ordering.

Move a window!! LOL. There is a lot of work moving a window and sourcing new bricks for outside the house could be hard. Make the units fit the room :-) These guys have loads of kitchen units so you should be able to get something to fit.

Oh yes I'm going to visit the diy showroom next month.... I'll make it fit 😂