Wren Kitchens

Yes, we went to Wren Kitchens in Milton Keynes and they wouldn't give us a plan of our 'new kitchen' to take away to consider it without actually ordering it. So we thought stuff you and walked out. The kitchen we chose is by Howdens and it is gorgeous, our builders fitted it as it was for a new extension.

I too had a kitchen from Howdens - this was about 16 years ago.
It’s still as good as new - no hinge problem, no door problems, no problems at all. Had a lovely granite work top. Can’t remember exactly what it cost but it was a fraction of the estimates from Poggenpohl and Sigma3

Oh Elles , forgot to add we had a wall between dining room and kitchen knocked down, to make it open-plan

No experience of rejection in this house.

We thought that Wren's attitude was awful with not a lot of thought given to our ideas. They weren't cheap either.

We found Howdens design not very flexible.

We went to an independent who took all our ideas on board and love the result.

I’ve never heard anything good about Wren I’m afraid.

We didn't like wren or Howden tbh.
We had an RSJ - it wasn't any more expensive than a wooden beam and though our engineer said it was arguably over-engineered it sailed through inspections.
I think it was a couple of hundred pounds.

Like MayBee70, I have heard nothing good about Wren. Problems with design, faulty goods, incorrect fitting etc etc

I can recommend Howdens too.
Never used Wrens.

We too went with Howdens rather than Wren, six years ago.

Est kitchen we ever bought was from IKEA. Heaps of amazing well thought out bits for drawers, cupboards etc. and a 25 year guarantee

Wrens have an appalling reputation for fitting

I wouldn’t buy Wren. They have countless adverts on tv atm. You might find it better and cheaper to go to a joinery company. We did and had a fantastic choice to our surprise.

Dd had an internal wall knocked down to make one large living area, which necessitated an RSJ. The cost depends on how long it is. Best to get a builder to give you a quote. The ceiling was jacked up whilst they waited for the beam to be manufactured.

I went to Wren a couple of years ago and they were very expensive. Also they outsource their fitters to local people. I asked for time to consider alongside quotes from other companies and got a very hostile response. I appreciate the salesperson had spent a good 2 hours with me but did they really think I was going to commit to spending such a vast sum without thinking it through. I felt it was very high pressured and that I (single, retired female) was talked down to as though I couldn’t be expected to understand the differences in the specs of the various products. I was then phoned at least twice a day as the salesperson attempted to pressure me into buying.
That, as much as anything else, put me off.
A neighbour has subsequently gone with them and has had nothing but problems from delivery being dumped in the front garden, wrong items delivered, fitters not arriving when scheduled, poor build and damaged items.
Very glad I decided not to go ahead.

We looked at Wren and eventually went with a local company that we’ve been very happy with. DD went with Howdens at around the same time, got very good service and are still delighted with their kitchen.

We installed a new kitchen lasteekbought from IKEA ,ordered towards the end of Januaryand delivered a week later .
This is our third IKEA kitchen.We dismantled the outgoing kitchen and built the new one ourselves .My OH did the plumbing but we were he.d up by the plumber who had flu who we needed to move gas supply.
All in all it’s finished and in use and took just over a week …including the wait for the plumber
It’s good quality has everything the other makes have a dis a great price .

We,ve built a lot of kitchens over the years and I wouldn,t
hesitate to recommend this company .

Not us, but friends of ours had a Wren kitchen and they were so disappointed. All was well during the design stages, choice of cabinets, doors and drawers was great BUT installation was a total shambles and they were left without connected appliances for days on end.

I know of one friend who had a Wren kitchen fitted very much with a view to updating the existing kitchen to sell the property. That was during one of their sale/special offer periods, she seemed fairly satisfied with the outlay, she very much had an eye to updating on a budget. She didn't live with the kitchen for very long, as that measure shifted the house very quickly back when there was last an upsurge in the property market.

We went scouting for a new kitchen in our last house, visited a Wren showroom, we thought they were very expensive. Eventually used a small local firm who, were far superior imo and undercut Wren's prices. We were also interested in using Howdens as the feedback surrounding their kitchens is very positive. Two houses ago we had a Magnet and Southern kitchen fitted, but that was over 30 years ago, recently they again seem to have become rather more expensive.

My nephew had a Wren kitchen and is pleased with it. They were just replacing old units in the same positions.

I wanted a completely new layout with a door moved and Wren didn’t do moving plumbing or electrics or building. I would have to arrange those separately so it was a no for me.

I haven't used Wren but had a Howden kitchen in my last house. I found builders who then said they only deal with Howdens. They organised the salesman who was quite rude and patronising, and insisted I had to have his exact design which was not what I wanted.

Oh dear, thank you everyone for the replies, that (sort of) makes my mind up. We have had a design done by them and have been given the layout and plans. I price checked everything and can't seem to find the same any cheaper but looking at their costings we would be paying a third of the full price for fitting?! We had a builder out who has quoted £4800 to knock down the wall which I thought was expensive.

My son and DIL had a kitchen designed and fitted by Wren in their new home. Nothing but issues from start to finish. Even over a year later there are still niggly bits that haven't been rectified.

I'm sorry, I thought you just wanted RSJ costs.
Our builder did a lot of work for us, not just taking the wall out so not sure about the cost of that but it was quite a straightforward job.

We have a wren kitchen - big mistake! They dont use their own fitters so its almost impossible to have any mistakes rectified. After our kitchen was fitted we had a problem with the door on the dishwasher washer. It took months before a chap came to sort it. He was not a happy man , said he had travelled 3 hours to get to us !!??
My advice stay clear of Wren.

The Wren advert is enough to put me off their kitchens. The awful black surfaces! I want a light, bright, "easy clean" kitchen, not something that looks like Dracula's lair and has surfaces that will look grubby almost as soon as they're wiped clean.