How To Identify The Best Kitchen Suppliers

So you’re in the market for a brand new kitchen. Maybe you’re renovating a kitchen and want to replace that dilapidated kitchen with a modern one, or you might be building a new house.

You really don’t want to buy a kitchen “off the shelf” in a big hardware store and try and install it yourself. Quality kitchens are a specialist field, best left up to a team of professionals to design and install, following your requirements.

So how do you go about choosing the right kitchen manufacturer/installer for you, someone who will deliver results, on time and within your proposed budget?

Let’s learn how to identify the best kitchen suppliers so you can make the right choice.

Jump To:
Visit Some Kitchen Showrooms
Seek Out Personal Recommendations
Perform An Online Search
You Want A Kitchen Supplier With Experience
Will They Work With Your Vision
The Takeaway

Visit Some Kitchen Showrooms

There should be some suppliers with kitchen showrooms you can browse in your area. Not only will this give you some ideas for your new kitchen, you can also check out the quality of the designs, materials used and the workmanship. You’ll also put yourself in a position where you can ask questions face to face.

Another advantage of visiting showrooms is you can get an idea of what a particular kitchen supplier will be like to deal with if you did give them the job.

Some things to keep in mind when visiting a showroom are:

• Are the staff friendly and approachable?
• Do they seem knowledgeable about their products/services?
• Do their designs fit in with what you have in mind?
• Are the display kitchens extremely well put together?
• Does the kitchen supplier offer anything within your budget?
• What timeframes do they work within to complete the kitchen?
• Do they custom build kitchens according to the client’s ideas?

After visiting a few kitchen showrooms you’ll come away armed with a lot more ideas, knowledge and a clearer idea of what you want in a kitchen and the kind of kitchen supplier you want to deal with.

Another thing you’ll want to see are some photos of actual jobs they’ve done for their customers. It’s only natural that the company will put in their very best effort when building their showroom kitchens, but do they maintain that level of quality outside of the showroom and in the client’s home?

Seek Out Personal Recommendations

Ask yourself if there is anyone you know – family member, friend, work colleague – who has recently had a new kitchen installed.

Personal recommendations are definitely one of the best ways to find a reputable supplier/installer and determine a good company to deal with.

If you know someone who had a new kitchen built in their home, were they happy with the results or not? If they weren’t happy, was it due to the quality of workmanship, the attitude of the company, the price?

Obviously you’re looking for a positive recommendation from somebody, but even if they weren’t totally happy with the results, it can be worth inquiring as to why.

Businesses thrive on referrals from past clients/customers, and if you can get referred to a kitchen supplier that does top notch work for the right price, possibly you might even get a better deal when you make mention of the fact that you know someone who recently used their services.

Perform An Online Search

The internet offers up a wealth of information, so you might as well take full advantage of it in your search for the right kitchen supplier.

First off you can search for kitchen suppliers near you. Once you have a few on your list that seem like a good fit, after looking over their websites, then see if you can dig up any further information on these companies.

What you’ll be looking for is independent mentions of the company from customers. Possibly things like:

• Facebook posts
• Forum posts
• Reviews on review sites
• Testimonials on independent websites

Really any mention of the company that is not on their own website. If you can find information like this it can really help you make up your mind about whether to deal with a certain company or not.

Likewise you could put the word out on social media, asking for personal recommendations for a kitchen supplier in your area and see what comes back.

The internet will help you to locate potential companies within your region and also to narrow down your shortlist.

You Want a Kitchen Supplier With Experience

It was mentioned earlier that you want to deal with a specialist; a company that focuses on kitchens (and possibly bathrooms) for the most part. Not just general cabinet makers.

You also want to deal with a kitchen supplier that has experience and an established track record in the industry.

While there’s nothing wrong with giving a new company a go, how will you know if they are any good at what they do if they have no history?

Everything mentioned in this post so far really depends on the company having been in business for a while. There won’t be any information out there about a brand new kitchen supplier, so you will have nothing to go on.

You’re far better off teaming up with a company that has proven experience.

Will They Work With Your Vision?

This is important if you have your own ideas of how you want your kitchen to look and function. Plus, every kitchen space is a little different anyway, so there needs to be a degree of flexibility on offer.

Once you’ve settled on one or two suppliers, talk to them about your ideas and get a feel for just how accommodating they’ll be with regards to implementing your ideas as best they can.

You want this to be a collaboration and a team effort, so choose a company that’s willing to work with you rather than simply sticking to rigid plans.

The Takeaway

The kitchen is one of the most used rooms in the home, so you want a kitchen that really fits in with your lifestyle. If you follow the guidance in this post, then you’ll find the right supplier to make your dream kitchen a reality.