Worth trying to get Howdens to price match or just crack on with DIY Kitchens?

[Eastie77Returns]

Our Howdens quote for a Chilcomb, excluding appliances & worktops, is just over £7k.

Like for like DIY Kitchen quote comes to £3.5k, subject to changes but DP (former kitchen fitter) built the plan with their online tool and it looks solid. He is done with Howdens, thinks our designer is incompetent and generally thinks DIY is better quality.

Personally I think quality is probably the same but obviously it makes sense to go with DIY based on price and I really like the Norton range we’ve selected.

Our Howdens rep initially said they do not price match DIY kitchens because the latter is always cheaper as they have fewer overheads. He also send Howdens have unique features such as soft closing cabinets hence the higher price

My only issue with DIY Kitchens is I want to see the models in person and it’s a 3.5hour trip to their showroom. We have friends in Leeds so can make a weekend of it but I’m a bit nervous about the returns process if any of the pieces arrive damaged etc. Our Howdens designer has now said if we send him the DIY quote he will speak to his manager and “see what he can do” but he is pretty slow at replying.

Has anyone successfully price matched Howdens with DIY Kitchens? I’m not sure if it’s worth going through it all (I can’t see them going down to £3.5) and as we are short of time DP wants us to order the DIY range today!

It’s worth knowing that DIY is the customer facing arm of a company called Ultima. It’s possible to go to an independent kitchen retailer and buy the exact same Ultima kitchen at a markup.

Where were you able to view these Ultima kitchens, @Tonsiltrouble? I cannot find a list of stockists on their website, and googling doesn't bring anything up.

Thanjs!

@FlowerArranger - I didn’t view any in shops. I was lucky that there are quite a few DIY kitchens that have been installed locally and I was able to view them in situ to get a feel for the quality (and was also able to compare to some other local families with Howdens kitchens). < All this through the local school mums grapevine.

As for finding a stockist, that’s not super easy, most small kitchen shops don’t tell you who they are buying from, but there are a limited number of companies who make/sell kitchens. And pretty much any kitchen place will say they sell Blum hinges (because it’s the industry standard). By going direct to the manufacturer you are saving money. We bought handles, appliances, worktops separately though.

This is a nice read about the history of DIY: www.diy-kitchens.com/about-diy-kitchens/history/

We thought DIY was better quality....and bought from them. Really happy with it and now 4 years old it still looks like new

Thanks, @Tonsiltrouble - unfortunately I'm way past the school mums grapevine... - but I guess I'll have to start doing some serious research on the ground if I'm ever going to get that kitchen I've been wanting for ages!

Very happy with my DIY Norton.
My fitter mainly did Howdens and was very skeptical, kept saying "Howdens are xyz". During the fit he changed his mind and was impressed by the quality of DIY.

I’ve done a rough calculation and I think my kitchen would be £4k for the cabinets compared to £8,500 with Howdens. That’s such a difference but I’m scared we’ll miss vital parts because I’ve never done anything like this before. I’ll download the design app and do it properly in the week. It’s very daunting though.

@NeedAHoliday2021 I feel the same it’s very daunting!! So worried I’d make a daft mistake!

We are currently installing a DIY kitchen and their customer service has been excellent and quick whenever we have found something missing or not quite right (e.g.legs or shelves). Not had anything we need to return or broken though we did have a shelf which didn't fit and they are sending a different size one.

@NeedAHoliday2021

I’ve done a rough calculation and I think my kitchen would be £4k for the cabinets compared to £8,500 with Howdens. That’s such a difference but I’m scared we’ll miss vital parts because I’ve never done anything like this before. I’ll download the design app and do it properly in the week. It’s very daunting though.

You won’t miss any parts. With DIY once you’ve finalised your design you submit it to DIY and they create a “shopping basket” which comes back to you complete with all the filler, end panels, and other bits and pieces to complete the kitchen

Sounds like Howdens are the dodgy double glazing company of the kitchen supply world.

If they can price match a 50% "discount" without problem, I can't imagine the markup.

Would anyone mind sharing how many units are included with these quotes, or kitchen size. I'm renovating and feel like a kitchen is years away because the kitchen is quite big with 18 units if we keep the layout.

This is my DIY kitchen, installed spring 2020 and still looking great.

I too was worried about the actual order process and all the extra finishing bits, but I already had a quote from a kitchen design place so just sent that over. DIY customer service were brilliant, especially Bethany.

To compare kitchens, don't just look at the choice of units and colours. Open the units, look at the drawers, the edges, wobble the doors and back panels. Companies who are proud of the construction of their units will have a sample to look at.
We have a Howdens kitchen about 5 years old, and some sort of coating is peeling off all the brushed metal handles. It all looks shabby.

Quotes are going to be variable depending on how expensive your units are!

From memory mine was about 10K for 6 wallcupboards + same floor, double belfast sink and associated bit and bobs. However as stated before I completely lost it in the showroom and went from loving a midrange kitchen to top price

My fitter only recommends DIY Kitchens and he also recommended I bought my worktops separately from Worktop Express (where I did exactly the same thing, what an idiot - no money saved at all)

Very happy with both. DIY Kitchens had so much choice of handles that in the end it was like picking something at random, I just didn't want to see another handle.

Absolutely delighted with my kitchen from DIY. We went for the Norton and chose bespoke F&B colours. My fitter was super impressed with the quality and the fact that the units arrive fully assembled. I found the planner a bit tricky to use initially, but got used to it quite quickly and really enjoyed the whole planning process. The customer service from DIY was great too. They answered all my daft questions, and made suggestions to improve the layout which I found really useful.

@Housepicturetime absolutely lovely kitchen! Can I ask what the colour(s) are on your wall? Shamelessly thinking of stealing your style

@AnnaMagnani yep, I think it’s entirely possible I walk out of the showroom with an entirely different and more expensive kitchen on order:) I’m so easily swayed it’s ridiculous. I’ve wanted a farmhouse style kitchen for ages but could just as easily end up with an industrial, exposed brickwork style model or anything else in between.

Does anyone know if DIY strictly enforce the amount of time you are allowed in the showroom? I’ve booked a slot and the email states it’s for one hour. We are in Leeds for a few days so was thinking of booking another slot but now assuming I can just go over my time if needed and they won’t frogmarch me out on the hour!

@Eastie77Returns - thank you! The paint on the walls is Little Greene intelligent matt emulsion in Tracery(ii) in the dining end, and French grey mid in the kitchen end. The Little Greene paint is excellent for a kitchen area as it’s fully wipeable. We don’t have tiles behind the hob (was meant to be temporary, lockdown etc) but the paint is good as new. This is the second kitchen/diner we have done in the same paint now.

This is very reassuring - we went with DIY Kitchens after Howdens managed to make their "including-our-builder's-discount" quote MORE expensive when DH, a seasoned negotiator, tried to get them down a bit. The only annoying thing is that DIY Kitchens isn't doing appliances at the moment so it's not exactly like for like, but the prices Howdens quoted for oven/dishwasher/hob, etc are about the same as other internet suppliers.

Does anyone have any online recommendations for finding a bundle of appliances?

I personally wouldn't by appliances from kitchen cabinet suppliers.

Like another poster I went with Worktop Express for my worktops and was very impressed with the service.

Appliances I shopped around for, reused integral fridge, already had freestanding washing machine, tumble drier and fridge freezer which are in the utility and brought a new integral dishwasher (existing one having given up the ghost) and range cooker.

I just looked around a lot, found the ones I wanted and then searched online for the best price and offers.

I had to replace my fridge freezer last year and went with Boots online as it was the best price plus I got Boots Advantage points.

Does anyone have any online recommendations for finding a bundle of appliances?

John Lewis and AO would be my first port of call....... but I'm open to suggestions

had to replace my fridge freezer last year and went with Boots online as it was the best price plus I got Boots Advantage points

Boots do household appliances???!!!
Well I never...

@FlowerArranger

had to replace my fridge freezer last year and went with Boots online as it was the best price plus I got Boots Advantage points

Boots do household appliances???!!!
Well I never...

That was exactly my reaction when it came up on a Google shopping search for the model I'd chosen!

I went to the showroom pre-Covid when you could stay as long as you liked but:

They do not design your kitchen for you - you have to do the planner yourself
They will make helpful suggestions on your planner which take them 30 seconds to do what it has taken you 3 hours to do at home

So we ended up spending the whole day, creating our kitchen plan and then the DIY Kitchens person reorganized it in about 10 minutes

Well, I did ask for suggestions, so thank you @Chasingsquirrels.
Learn something new every day

Thinking about it, the order was actually fulfilled by AO, but ordered via Boots and as I said with advantage points. And the same price as showing on AO website.