Small kitchen - go for Wren/ex display/others?

[Housemum]

We are putting a simple straight line kitchen in a granny annexe. We found an ex-display Schuller kitchen for £5k (apparently retails at 10k) which feels lovely but I can't help worrying that there is the risk of something not being right as there is nothing we can change about it. Going for the top Wren handleless range would be the same price for the same configuration, but we would have the option to change the cupboards around.

We have a fitter lined up so the issue is purely where to get a decent kitchen - and it needs to be a national chain or somewhere in the South as I want to be able to see the units, so please don't suggest DIY kitchens even if they are fab!

Are Wren as bad as the reputation seems to suggest or is it only if you use Wren fitters/buy their budget range?

thanks for your help!!

What about Howdens or Benchmarx (have been recommended the latter). Your fitter would buy them for you?

We have a howdens kitchen in our current rental and it's stood up pretty well for 3 years, a few niggles which are down the the fitting but the kitchen itself is quite impressive.

We are going to have a look at Howdens/Benchmarx in the week (forgot that they were only open in mornings on Saturdays as trade suppliers). I do like the look of the Wren one but keep having a niggling worry that somehow I'm being "done".

As someone with a Wren kitchen, I would advise you to go elsewhere. The kitchen is nice now, but we had an absolute nightmare getting all the correct pieces delivered whilst batting with their awful customer service. See the six year strong thread which tells you everything you need to know!

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/property/1734578-Wren-kitchens-Yes-No-Good-Bad

I would have a detailed chat with your fitter about what he/she can do to the Schuller kitchen. You may be surprised with what they can swap around.

Benchmarx are decent though, or what about Ikea.

We had our kitchen from DIYKitchens.com and it is amazing. A few issues with bits missing off the order but nothing too major. They have a showroom in pontyfract (Doncaster). It might be a bit of a drive for you but is really worth it!! You design it yourself and they have advisors who can look over your plans for you to make sure your not missing anything. You order it all online and the units come pre-assembled so it’s easy to fit. We had quite a big kitchen from them (about 18 units) and it came to £5000!! And it wasn’t one of their cheapest kitchen ranges so you could get it cheaper than that.