Wren Kitchens Compared: How Do They Stack Up Against Wickes, Howdens, and TKC?
Wren Kitchens, Howdens, Wickes and TKC Kitchens are 4 leading fitted kitchen companies in the UK. With so many options out there, it can be difficult to decide where to buy your kitchen from, and there is no simple comparison site that can tell you the pros and cons of each company and compare their range of kitchens.
So, we’ve had a look for you and gathered all the useful information from different sources.
The graph below shows you how these best kitchen companies scored on some of the key points that people look for when buying a kitchen:
Most of us have spent more time than ever at home over the past 12 months. This break has allowed us to really evaluate the space that we live and work in. Many of us have looked to make changes to our homes that were always put on hold in the past. From designing and renovating kitchens to getting fresher smarter new kitchen Units, many people have made some sort of home improvement during the lockdown.
If you are still looking for a fitted kitchen company to get your kitchen done then our comprehensive guide is aimed at narrowing down which company can provide you with high-quality products and expert designers for your home at the best possible price. Hopefully, this will help you save time while you search for your dream kitchen.
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The kitchen is the heart of the home where the most meaningful and memorable events of our lives occur. A primary factor to getting a perfectly styled and functional kitchen space is to select a suitable kitchen layout. A well-designed and planned kitchen can transform even the smallest of spaces into an open, airy, and functional place. There is a lot more work than just buying and placing the kitchen units, furniture, and other appliances into it, functionality and comfort also play a huge role. Ensuring enough space, measuring the right heights, correct placement of appliances, and many other correlating factors are crucial for the ease of use, comfortable movement, and overall working satisfaction in a kitchen.
So let’s see which company stands out.
WICKES Kitchen’s
Introduction to Wickes Kitchens
Wickes is a renowned kitchen company that claims to provide everything from virtual designs, installation, and final touches under one roof for a kitchen. We explore their online store which has a huge collection of kitchen products for personalizing kitchen designs according to your style. You can choose from a wide range of flooring, tiles, kitchen styles, kitchen units, and the latest appliances. Wickes offers two different kitchen styling options that are Showroom kitchens and Ready to fit kitchens. The two ranges have been offered to ensure suitability for every budget and style needs.
Wickes Kitchens
The kitchen styles that we discovered at Wickes kitchens are defined here for you. The Showroom Kitchen range will be better if you want to design your kitchen from scratch. Their designers will take measurements before start designing and finalizing the kitchen. Wickes kitchen offers a guarantee of 2 years of workmanship. Wickes showroom kitchen collection has more than 40 styles with the availability of hundreds of cabinetry options on their website. You can consult their consultants in-store before making a purchase. The Fitted kitchen collections at Wickes has almost everything from traditional designs to modern handless cabinetry. Wickes can be an option to avail if you are looking for ready-to-fit kitchen designs. You can make your kitchen by choosing the items from their ready-to-fit collection because it has more than 10 different fitted kitchen ranges. These fitted kitchen collections are available with ease to pick up or order online from their website.
Wickes Kitchen Services:
Even though Wickes kitchen’s has stylish, sleek, and variety of products shown on their online store, we found that once you add on the cost of additional services the budget becomes very stretched, and you are no longer looking at mid-range prices. If you are looking to buy with a lower or mid-range budget then you might get disappointed after knowing their prices and installation costs can bump up the total cost of your kitchen significantly. It can be unsuitable if your budget is not flexible. Some installation costs came up higher than the cost of the full kitchen.
If we talk about the cheaper prices for basic, simply ready-to-fit kitchen designs from their budget range then units alone will start at around £530. These prices then rise as the ranges become sleeker and modern-looking. The price ranges for their showroom-fitted kitchen collection are not available on their website. Wickes Kitchen states their quotes for showroom kitchens only after getting your requirements and measurements of kitchens. Their consultants are available at the stores and online. They claim to have a trusted and expert installation team who can fix up everything from fitting, plumbing, electricity, to lighting but the cost is approximately £3500 for only 10 units of installation. They will perform a short survey before starting the installation job. Before ordering anything do talk with their consultants because you are going to pay an additional installation cost which differs from project to project depending upon the work required.
Wickes Complaints
Despite a wide range of styles and designs appearing on the Wickes, the number of complaints is very high. Their customers are extremely disappointed by their poor customer service. Most of them claim that Wickes doesn’t have any stock in their stores ever, they just show products on the website to generate a lead so that their sales team can then pitch you. They keep on ignoring customers’ complaints and issues which illustrates Wickes has no concern about their customers. The customers state that communication with their staff is the worst and even after confirmed bookings, they make excuses to delay the appointments. Another major complaint is about budget estimation, which is so poor that you will end up spending almost double the amount predicted by their experts. It is a recommendation to see many other disappointing complaints available on Trustpilot about Wickes Kitchens before investing your money.
tkckitchens.co.uk
Introduction to tkckitchens.co.uk
A UK-based company that aims to cater to all budgets, tkckitchens.co.uk seem to be a popular online kitchen manufacturer as they allow you to purchase online in any colour or style. A simple 30-second sign-up allows you access to a full price list, they also offer design service and installation too. You can then add the items to the cart and check out, avoiding any salesperson and appointments. If you want to get your hands on some affordable, long-lasting, and high-quality kitchens then you should consider tkckitchens.co.uk. Their team is helpful in offering virtual appointments as well as home visits, free designs, and a price match. Everything needed for completing and decorating an ideal kitchen is available at tkckitchens.co.uk. They have everything from traditional-looking kitchens to modern and stylish bespoke kitchens. The quality of work they provide at minimum prices is unrivalled.
tkckitchens.co.uk have a huge collection of new Fitted kitchen styles which are much more budget-friendly compared to Wickes. Getting your dream kitchen that matches your lifestyle isn’t easy however we found tkckitchens.co.uk to be very helpful. They offer exceptional new kitchen units, kitchen worktops, custom cabinets, kitchen appliances, kitchen designs, and full kitchen unit installation service at affordable prices. Every piece of furniture you buy from tkckitchens.co.uk units are approved and tested by FIRA and FSC certified. They assure high-quality products and new kitchen units.
Kitchen Styles
You can choose either from their wide range of fitted kitchens styles or get a personalized design from their consultants. As standard they offer a selection of colours for the inside of the cabinets as well as the outside, so you can match the inside of the cabinets to the colour of your doors. They have a diverse range of classy, sleek, and practical fitted kitchen designs and are the only company that allows you to buy online. You can access the published design on their website. If you don’t get your required design on their website, you can simply let them know what you are looking for, they provide custom kitchen design for free. Their designers guide you with every step needed to get a perfect kitchen as you required.
Their unit prices are affordable starting from £113 and you can get a discount on multiple products when you order them from Sale. You can add and remove kitchen units while ordering which is a good option to customize prices according to what you can afford. Get a variety of bespoke kitchen units at the cheapest prices all around the UK from tkckitchens.co.uk.
Services
Their services are not limited to kitchen units, appliances or worktops, they also provide complete installation services which include plumbing, electrical work, and minor construction work. Every task is performed under robust safety measures and the waste materials/items are disposed. The process to get the Free consultation from their experts is easy, just contact them and describe your needs. They will provide you with 15 minutes of free consultation to know what are your requirements concerning styles, materials, colours, price, appliances, worktops, and fittings, etc. After a complete and detailed discussion, their designers will provide you with a customized new design while maintaining a perfect balance between the required style, functionality, and your budget. They can also help you to select from their ready-to-fit collections according to your requirements. The end results of their projects are extremely mesmerizing from fittings to designs; they take care of everything from scratch to the end.
Complaints
If we talk about the complaints regarding tkckitchens.co.uk, we had a really hard time finding any bad reviews or complaints about this company. The customers seemed quite happy with the expert kitchen designers for their services. According to different buyers, they recommend this company because of their prices and value for money. Good products with cheaper prices made it a choice of many homeowners.
HOWDEN Kitchen’s
Introduction to Howden Kitchen’s
Howdens kitchens is a popular kitchen design maker that provides bespoke handmade kitchens matching every lifestyle on their website. With probably 75 designs of handleless designs, slabs, and shakers, the choice of colours, materials, layout, and sizes will be only yours and you can find thousands of kitchen units styles to decorate your kitchen flawlessly. Howdens is famous for its enormous depots all around the UK. You can easily find a depot nearest to your location from their website. Many homeowners from the UK choose Howdens while planning a new kitchen or for buying any fitted kitchen. They provide a guarantee of 3 to 25 years for different products in their store. After making the dreams of many customers into reality Howdens Kitchens has gained a wonderful positive rating however they deal with Trade only, so you can not buy directly and need to go via a tradesperson.
Styles
Howdens styles include fitted kitchens and a lot of individual kitchen units. Their Fitted Kitchen styles can be adjusted in any kind of kitchen space and layout. Their focus is to provide you with a fitted kitchen according to your style with a durable and reliable fit. You can choose from their kitchen units which include kitchen doors, kitchen cabinets, fittings, sinks, appliances, taps, surfaces, and storage.
Services
Howdens offers a free design appointment for kitchen planning and advice at the ease of your home or your nearest depot, again for trade only. Discuss the style, layouts, and final look you want for your kitchen and their expert kitchen designers will suggest the best kitchen design according to your preferences. After connecting remotely, you can get the virtual kitchen designs in online sessions from their experts which is safer nowadays due to covid. You can visit the depot for a face-to-face discussion with the designer. If everything goes right, one of the designers will visit your home to take measurements and you will be given a 3D design with exact measurements.
Complaints
Most customers have complaints regarding the unhelpful, rude, and useless support at Howdens. Another section of complaints was filled with issues related to extra and lots of hidden charges for products and delivery, the company charges many customers extra money. Other than this, their delivery service has high rates. The customers say that their claim of having expert designers is wrong because some of them got their kitchens done and the output was different and unacceptable. So a bit of a gamble if something goes wrong as their after-sales care scores poorly.
Wren Kitchens
Introduction to Wren Kitchen’s
Wren Kitchens is a popular kitchen design maker that has been offering its since 2009. Their kitchen designs with affordable prices can be considered if you are living in the UK and planning to buy fitted kitchens or want to renovate your kitchen. They manufacture different, unique, beautiful, and long-lasting designs which make their kitchens stand out. They have been fulfilling time to time changing trends for a diverse range of clients. This has gained them enough expertise to choose what’s right for clients. They will guide you through the whole process. You just have to choose your design and they will create it for you after finalizing and discussing everything with you. Their expert and highly experienced workers claim to complete every task smoothly while keeping your needs and lifestyle in view but don’t fall for any trap and check Wren Kitchen complaints once.
Styles
The two major kitchen styles they offer include Fitted kitchens and Wrenovation kitchens. A thousand styles, sizes with a wide range of choices are available on their website in their Fitted Kitchen range. A large variety gives you a chance to choose whatever is reasonable for you. To find inspiration for your new kitchen, you can simply check their Wrenovation Kitchens. Multiple samples and delivered projects’ photos from Wrenovation kitchen have been placed on their website, you can check the unique styles delivered to many customers.
Services
Another company that has made creating and designing kitchens easier. With Wren’s online design service, you can just sit at home with a cup of coffee to enjoy exploring their new designs on their website. On the other hand, you can also visit any of Wren’s nearest showrooms to check the products. At Wren, they offer free home measures. After the design is finalized they ask you to leave everything on their expert designers and installation team. Their installation service claims to reduce your strain of removing and disposing of old kitchens. They also promise to take care of everything but the complaints say otherwise.
Complaints
Wren claims to have the best quality material used in manufacturing every product. But the major portion of complaints was about the unacceptable and poor quality of products. The customers are furious because the quality of products in the store is entirely different from the delivered products. Some other complaints depicted that they just want your money; the minute you transfer money they won’t be listening to you. The complaints say they even send damaged, wrong, or scratched items sometimes and then they don’t consider themselves accountable in any way. A newly fitted kitchen is a huge investment and you do not want things falling apart and not lasting.
After researching from different sources about these four different kitchen companies we have brought you a comparison among them. Comparison is based on the key parameters that would help you decide which is best for you. A new kitchen is one big investment so you need to put a little effort before investing a huge amount and only go for companies that are really worth the money. We hope the guide is helpful as we are here to guide you about the facts that you are unaware of so stay tuned with us for home improvement.
