This week we are handing the Kitchenroom Blog over to one of our customers, so they can share, in their own words, their journey with Kitchenroom and their new fitted kitchen.

We first met Gemma Charles from Didcot in Oxfordshire back in early 2020. Little did we know at the time that we would end up helping Gemma and her family install a brand new, completely redesigned fitted kitchen in the midst of a global pandemic and all of the challenges that went with it. Here Gemma explains why she chose to go with Kitchenroom as her fitted kitchen supplier, and what the experience was like.

“We moved house in January 2020, going from a new build which we loved but had out-grown, to an older, much larger property which needed some work doing to it. As with many older properties it consisted of a small kitchen and separate dining room which we immediately knew we wanted to make one room by knocking down the separating wall. We consulted a structural engineer and as soon as he gave us the go ahead that the wall could come down, we started researching kitchen suppliers in Oxfordshire. The usual suspects popped up on Google, as did Kitchenroom, who had also been recommended to us by a family member. Keen to make the right decision for us, we arranged design visits with three companies – a national chain, a supplier selling to the trade, and Kitchenroom.

“One of the things which surprised us when booking a design visit, was just how difficult it was to find somebody who was prepared to come out and visit our property. As we were planning on turning two rooms into one we felt strongly that a kitchen designer really needed to see the space to understand what we wanted to achieve and the flow of the room. We also weren’t confident with supplying measurements ourselves as it’s not an easy thing to measure through walls! One of the brilliant things about Jason at Kitchenroom was that he was happy to come out to the house to get the initial brief for the project, and also pop back as often as we needed him to as our plans developed. It’s definitely one of the benefits of using a local company.

“At our home design visit Jason spent a good hour with us chatting about everything from our overall taste and style to kitchen gadgets and internal space-savers. He was really receptive to our ideas about how we like to use the kitchen and was fantastic when it came to measuring up with the internal wall still in situ. Ideally the wall would’ve been removed before planning a new kitchen, but with two small children at home, Jason totally understood our need to keep the window of building/kitchen installation work as small as possible.

“Within a couple of weeks of having all our design visits we had received three different kitchen plans and prices. We were absolutely blown away by the design submitted by Kitchenroom, both in terms of the design itself and the quality of the mock-ups. They were so realistic, even down to the flow of light into the room. Of all the plans we received the one from Kitchenroom was by far the most exciting prospect, featuring some really thoughtful touches and elements which gave it a more premium feel. One example of this was the thickness of the worktops, which was far superior from Kitchenroom. One supplier even had to make the island smaller than we had wanted as they didn’t sell quartz worktops in a large enough slab. To our surprise the quote from Kitchenroom was also really reasonable and very comparable to the two other quotes we received, even though we felt like we were getting a far more premium product with them.

“Suffice to say our decision ended up being made very easily and we told Jason we would like to go ahead with refining the plan. Jason was absolutely fantastic at this stage – it felt like he went out of his way to get us the very best kitchen possible within our budget. I remember him ringing me excitedly one day to tell me he’d had a meeting with one of his suppliers and the kitchen we had loved, but couldn’t quite afford was now going to be in budget. Hearing his enthusiasm about being able to deliver us what we really wanted was so lovely and made us feel like he really cared about our project. We were just about to go ahead a place our order when…

“COVID hit. Everything ground to a halt as the country shut down, and I remember being so, so, so grateful that we hadn’t knocked that wall down before starting the kitchen work!! The situation was obviously far from ideal for everyone but Jason kept us updated about the various manufacturer’s plans to reopen and how lead times might be affected. We never felt forgotten about and were confident that once things were back up and running again, we would be a priority. Of course, once manufacturing re-started it was far from smooth sailing, with shortages of all sorts of things affecting production. Jason liaised with the suppliers constantly and kept us updated as to what was happening, which was so helpful as we’d opted to use our own kitchen fitters and so could keep them updated in turn.

“Of course, as with any project sometimes issues occurred which needed to be sorted out; this is something Jason and Kitchenroom really are fantastic at – their customer service is second to none. One issue we had centred around the availability of a cooker. We had our hearts set on a Rangemaster cooker with brass trim, to match the brass handles we’d chosen, however because of the factory shutdowns and shortages brought about by COVID, Rangemaster cookers were in very short supply, with very long lead times. With our kitchen due to be delivered in just one week, we found ourselves in a stressful situation where we may have to wait a further three months for a cooker! I needn’t have worried as Jason was fantastic at finding a solution. I’m still not sure how he managed it, as I’d trawled the internet myself to no avail, but he managed to track down the exact cooker we were after, and had it delivered with time to spare. We were so grateful.

“This encounter set the tone completely for our experience with Kitchenroom once the units arrived. If ever an issue cropped up Jason was able to sort it out quickly and without fuss or extra expense for us. You can tell he must have great relationships with his suppliers as they all seem to want to help him. We’ve embarked on a few kitchen projects so we know that no building work ever goes completely to plan, but the important thing is how you’re able to work together to put it back on track. Kitchenroom are fantastic in this respect, with Jason even lending our fitters a tool in one instance to help them complete one of their tasks quicker. He really goes above and beyond.

“Our new kitchen took about three weeks to install, which was just a little bit longer than we’d planned. We were pretty happy with this considering the huge shortage of tradespeople and materials being experienced at the time. The kitchen itself was very much worth the wait! The quality of it is far superior to anything we saw in a showroom, despite the fact that the cost was practically the same. Even our kitchen fitters commented on how lovely it was, and how much easier it was to fit with the units being pre-assembled. The doors feel incredibly solid and the wirework we chose for the inside of some of the cupboards feels really strong and durable.

“We have been enjoying out new fitted kitchen for just over a year now, and we love it as much now as we did when it was first installed. I occasionally still have those moments where I can’t believe it’s really ours! It gets heavily used, with two young children and a very bouncy beagle putting the units through their paces constantly, but it is wearing incredibly well. We opted for painted wood which was a great choice for us as any little marks can be put right with the touch up paint we were provided with, not that we’ve had to use it yet! We receive so many compliments about it, both with regards to how it looks, but also how well the space works. It took a while before we were able to test it out fully, but Jason really has designed a fantastically sociable entertaining space that I’m sure we’re going to enjoy using for many years to come!

“If you’re thinking of getting a new kitchen from Kitchenroom, I would say definitely do it! Working alongside a local company is so much more personal and reassuring. From start to finish Jason was my point of contact which makes life so much easier. You also get so much more for your money – the quality is far superior to anything we saw for the same kind of budget – it’s a no-brainer!”

Does this sound like the sort of experience you’d like?

Why not get in touch today to book your FREE home design visit? We cover the Oxfordshire and Berkshire areas, including, but not limited to Didcot, Abingdon, Radley, Oxford City, Wantage, Wallingford, Benson, Berinsfield, Goring, Pangbourne.

With Kitchenroom you can always be assured of:

1. First class personal service from start to finish

2. 18 mm Rigid (assembled) wall and base units with doors already fitted

3. 10 cabinet colour options (so not just white / ivory or oak) to match the colour of the kitchen

4. 2 mm ABS edged cabinets

5. Soft close Blum doors & drawers that come with a lifetime guarantee

6. 25 year guarantee on our units / 10 years on Solid wood kitchens / 7 years on MDF kitchens

7. A typical lead time of 3-4 weeks

8. We can supply only or supply and arrange to fit your new kitchen where we will take care of the whole project from start to finish

Want to know more?

Why not take a look at some of our recently completed kitchen installations?

Click here to see our range of fitted kitchens.