Majjie's Blog

I came across an article the other day, entitled "How to Cook Up Kitchen Savings" ... by Marc Lockley on www.guardian.co.uk. That's no surprise - I'm always on the lookout for items on designing or buying a kitchen. This one made me feel slightly uncomfortable, though. Do you really all want something for nothing these days? And what constitutes a good deal?

A lot of the advice in the article was good. It suggested giving your plan a lot of thought before going to buy your kitchen; having a fixed budget and sticking to it; and considering ex-display and secondhand kitchens.

In order to get the best deal, though, the recommendations were: to let the salesperson know you're after a very keen price; to "omit one or two smaller items from your list" - and then add them later as "deal closers" (in other words - ask for them as free gifts); and then to go into the showroom on a quiet day, say that you've had a better offer from another supplier (whether or not you have) and say something along the lines of: "I will buy from you now if you reduce the price by £500 and include an extractor fan and sink taps".

Now, I don't sell kitchens any more, so I don't really have an axe to grind here, but do you really think that any reasonably savvy kitchen salesperson is going to fall for that?

Tell a kitchen salesperson that you're looking for a really good discount and you're asking for the price to be loaded in the first place! The salesperson will simply add on a big chunk of money to the price he or she wants, in order to knock it off later and make you think you're getting a good deal.

And no kitchen designer worth their salt is going to fail to notice that your plan is missing an extractor and some taps. Are you prepared to lie about whether or not they should be included? If both you and the designer gloss over these omissions, then they'll either already be included in the price (without you knowing) ... or you'll get some battered old model that nobody else wanted.

I'm slightly appalled that the Guardian should be recommending such tactics. About a year ago, I noticed the Independent condemning B&Q for the slightly dubious nature of their 50% Sale. Journalists can't have it both ways! If you as customers are going to be that tricky ... then won't you deserve more false Sales, inflated list prices and high pressure sales tactics from your suppliers? And if you do manage to steal a march over them ... and get something for free ... how keen do you think they're going to be, to go that extra mile, when it comes to fitting your kitchen.

Everybody wants good value for money when they're buying a new kitchen and maybe a few tactics are justified ... if you know you're dealing with an organisation that already has ridiculously inflated list prices and continual Sales ... and you've organised the fitting separately. My recommendation, though, would be to go to a small, fairly independent, high street showroom ... that's going to give you a choice of qualities, and a realistic price for each, in the first place.

There are some tricks safeguards that I do think are worth considering:

1. If you not only think about your plan, but also get an independent design for your kitchen in advance (which includes a unit list) ... then that is good grounds for asking for a discount (it'll save the supplier money - assuming they provide so-called "free" plans for customers in the first place). Of course I do have an axe to grind here!
2. I would always tell the kitchen supplier that you're planning to buy your own appliances and get an initial price just for the furniture (and any laminate worktops). That way you'll get the best price for the furniture.
3. Make a list of all the appliances you want and have a look on the internet for the best prices available. Then take that list to a number of different suppliers - including internet suppliers, your kitchen supplier (you'll then get a true price, just for the appliances) and any local appliance warehouses. The total price for the appliances, all from one supplier, should be less than the total of your researched "best" prices. 

What do you think? Do you like to haggle? And would you use tricky techniques like pretending you'd had a better quote and asking for "free" throw-ins, that you knew you wanted all along?