So you've made the decision, you want a new kitchen, bedroom or bathroom, now what? Where do we go? what do we do? how do we avoid wasting our hard earned cash?
Do we go "direct to the manufacturer" by ringing one of those 0800 numbers in the Sunday magazines? Our we better off with DIY, or one of the major nationals? An independent studio, wouldn't that be better? I know i'll get everything off the internet and save a fortune... I think.
Decisions, decisions, decisions, and I haven't got out of bed yet. My head's hurting already, I think i'll go back to sleep, we'll sort it another day.
Well stop panicking and let's go through the choices together, stick the kettle on, it might take a while. But when we're done, you should know which way to go. How's that, headache subsiding? I thought so.
Right, you ready? let's go through them one by one starting at the top.
Direct From The Manufacturer
Direct from the manufacturer, what does this mean? Well usually, direct selling. You ring a number in the paper or Sunday magazine, or visit one of a few nationwide scattered showrooms, and they send someone to plan your Kitchen, bedroom, or bathroom. They usually insist on both partners being present when the designer/sales person calls, so most appointments are in the early evening. why? you may be asking. Well the simple truth is they want an answer there and then, before they leave. They want to take away a deposit or better still get a finance agreement signed. Here's how it usually works.
The salesman calls, introductions and formalities are got over with, tea or coffee is on the go, you've seen the photos of his kids and met the dog. Next he measures your room (let's go with kitchen for the purpose of this exercise, saves me typing bedroom and bathroom every time. I know just lazy I guess). Most of them have been trained to measure so this shouldn't be to much of a problem, although drawing to scale on graph paper can be a bit tedious and time consuming.
Okay he's drawn the room got out his little kitchen stencil and hey presto, he's designed you a dream kitchen. Fantastic, How much? Where do I sign?
Hey slow down, less of the enthusiasm, your supposed to haggle, he's only been there an hour and a half, he hasn't rung his boss yet to get the best possible deal, once in a lifetime, today only... you get the picture.
Anyway what our salesman has, is a closely guarded price catalogue which he uses to cost your kitchen. Now he can't sell it for under that price, or else it comes out of his commission, by the way this is usually 10 - 12.5% of the sale. He wants your order today, got to feed those kids and the dog. So he needs some incentive for you to buy. This is the part I don't like. Now they add a large amount on to the kitchen (double in some cases) and offer you a discount if you buy tonight. Now the haggling starts, and boy can it be long, all to get you back to the price he was happy to sell at 2 hours ago. What's wrong with that you ask? (especially if you're the salesman). Well, what about the couple that do not haggle very well, or the couple that are worn out and just want to go to bed. They end up buying at a hugely inflated price, the salesman's not going to give it back, why should he, you were happy to pay.
Listen, I'm not saying don't do it, just be aware of what's going on. If you think you have got a bargain go for it. You may like haggling. It's not for me, i'd rather watch Corri..
Nationals or DIY
Well, what can I say? Some nationals offer an installation service, okay if you get a good fitter, not so good if your fitter was a gardener last week, brought in for the sales.
The products these days are pretty good, or at the very least value for money. They keep us independents on our toes. They usually have big showrooms with lots of displays, great for ideas. So what lets them down? Well, a couple of things really.
Their designers are not always the best, or the most interested, although there are some exceptions. I have come across some very good designers working for national retailers. Unfortunately most end up leaving and working for independents, or start their own businesses. (Hey that was me twenty years ago. Seems like yesterday).
The other major failing is organisation. You order your kitchen, pay for it in full up front, and four to six weeks later half of it arrives. The other half you're assured is on its way, should be with you in the next four to six weeks. Unless of course the range has been discontinued in the intervening period, in which case it is start again!
Don't get me wrong, the nationals dominate the market and always will. If you're on a tight budget, can put up with a little bit of hassle and a few trips to the local depot, that's the way you may want to go. It should be cheaper than an independent.
Independent Studio
That's me, wow, well what can I say, you'd be a fool not to....
Seriously though, Independent Studios are not for everyone. We generally are a bit dearer than nationals, we may not have as many displays to show you, although some do. So why come to us?
Well, the main reason is our expertise and our attention to detail. Most of us will have been designing kitchens, bedrooms, or bathrooms for many years. Between Jeff and I there is over fifty years of experience (now that's sad). But what the heck, someones got to do it.
We, and I guess most other Studios offer complete project management. So what does that mean? Well I can only speak for Classic Interiors, but for us it means, taking full responsibility design, ordering, delivering and installing you chosen project. There's no looking for joiners, plumbers, electricians, tilers, builders. No organising removal of your old kitchen, bedroom, or bathroom, no skips to organise. You can even go on holiday if you want (many of our clients have). We take responsibility for everything, we'll even feed the dog, only kidding, best to put it in Kennels if you're going away, we wouldn't want to lose it.
We may be a bit dearer than the nationals, but for some, the piece of mind is worth it.
Finally:-
The Internet
Everybody seems to be buying off the internet these days. So is it the right thing to do for your kitchen, bedroom or bathrooms? In truth for some things, it may well be, but for others, there are difficulties that need to be considered.
Buying a kitchen on the internet is prone to disaster, unless you know exactly what you are looking for, and how many people know that when they start out looking? You can't touch or feel on the internet and returning unwanted kitchen units would be difficult and costly. Bedrooms suffer from the same problems as kitchens when it comes to purchasing over the web.
Bathrooms however are a different matter. Most people do not re-design their bathrooms, they re-vamp them. By this I mean things do not get moved around merely replaced with new. Quite often people have their own plumber who will do the work with items supplied by the customer. It is not for everyone but it can be done.
The big advantage for the consumer is cost. On average things are up to twenty percent cheaper on the web. How come you may be asking. Well, think about it for a minute. Let's look at our own online store, Classic Interiors World of Bathrooms. We offer a large selection of bathroom products with savings of up 20% over and above our showroom price. The reasons we can do this are, we do not have to handle the goods, they are delivered direct from the manufacturer. We do not have to take delivery, check the goods, contact customers and arrange delivery, or for that matter deliver. That alone represent a massive saving in time costs, which can be passed on.
Again this is not for everyone, and we think kitchens and bedrooms are prone to disaster, but bathrooms, unless you want or need project management, why not give it a try.
Dave
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