Supply only kitchens. How much do you do?

Just wondering how everyone goes about offering supply only kitchens (I assume nobody does fitted only?)


This is prompted by my 3 hours on site visit and additional works yesterday for a job where we shouldn't (imo) be doing this much...

Builder provides dimensions for new room to client.
Client brings in dims and we produce a design.
Client then opts to go supply only, appliances from the internet and a stone mason they have used before. (= not much in it for us)
We are now supplying just the furniture (cabs, doors panels etc)
Kitchen is ordered before room is finished as they are in a rush to be done by xmas.

cue yesterday on site...

Builder has now finished the room, plastered and its 65mm shorter than originally spec'd - kitchen wont fit and I get called out because I designed it and they think this is somehow my fault?

Spent time on site with the builder and client, came up with some options to gain us back the 65mm, client decides to go for a slimline DW to free up 150mm

Would you have gone out and provided the re-design service? for free?
Would you supply the new 450 dishwasher door FOC, at cost or at retail?

Also as it turns out the USA fridge they bought online isn't the same model I had designed and spec'd for and the fridge doors wouldn't have worked anyway! even if the room was the size I had on paper, so the extra 150mm might just mean they can open the fridge door 90 deg. before hitting a wall as well


If we were fitting then I would insist on a check measure before the kitchen was ordered, (once the room was further along) and this would be an issue.

Supply only always seems to involve more than just delivering a list of parts as ordered.





EDIT, Maybe this topic is more for KFF than Here ?

I usually add a line on the estimate "Fitting Pack" for supply only to cover the extra work that sometimes happens.

Do you have the customer sign the plan and order which can cover you if it says that any alterations to the dimensions or spec are at you the customers cost?

This should then cover you for the re-designing and changing specs...

Yes, they sign off the quote and plans. - but this doesn't seem to cross their minds at the time of any problems.
I have ended up doing the DW door at cost. as a bit of good will.

Would you charge to do the site visit and the additional design work?


On your fitting pack line - do you have this on every quote, fitted or supply only? As many of my supply only jobs just start as a 'full service' quote, then they ask for supply only once the builder under cuts my fitting price or if they just think its the easier route.

I don't very often have a customer ask for supply only so only use this line when from the onset I know it is going to be.
I avoid cost breakdowns to and if a customer insists on seeing a partial breakdown (appliances, worktops, installation) I have a button to move margins ;-)

The thought I've had today is to add a line or two in my installation section on all quotes:

- Site survey and check measure
- Detailed Installation plans - Fitting notes, Elevations, electrical and plumbing notes.

Then if somebody goes for a supply only, I can ask if they still require these two items, and then attach a value to them.
if they opt to not have a site survey and installation plans and shit hits the fan, I could then charge them for a site survey.

mister_mitch wrote:The thought I've had today is to add a line or two in my installation section on all quotes:

- Site survey and check measure
- Detailed Installation plans - Fitting notes, Elevations, electrical and plumbing notes.

Then if somebody goes for a supply only, I can ask if they still require these two items, and then attach a value to them.
if they opt to not have a site survey and installation plans and shit hit the the fan, I could then charge them for a site survey.

Good Solution

I work for the trade arm of our business and 99% of what we do is supply only. 99% of those supply onlys are either in Scotland or Surrey, so too far away for us to go out to site.

We send off a terms and conditions pack with every deposit invoice stating the end user, fitter or builder is responsible for ensuring all dimensions are correct and we won't be held accountable for any errors. That said, we've only had 4 jobs in over two years where the sizes changed enough to mean the design wouldn't work. 2 of those jobs were notified to us before we had started production, so could be changed by us anyway and the other 2 had to pay for replacements.

Whenever we have a local job, we always make sure we site visit when the room has been lined to double check everything is going to be ok, we tend to find a lot more errors closer to home though. (had one room that was 650mm shorter on one wall and the ceiling had shrunk by 300mm!!!)

I guess it's slightly different for us as we manufacture ourselves so we can be quite flexible when the need arises.

So do you design in bigger tolerances knowing its a supply only? i.e. bigger fillers and corners posts?

(I hate fillers, so always design as tight as I can to the room, but this can then bite me in the arse)

mister_mitch wrote:So do you design in bigger tolerances knowing its a supply only? i.e. bigger fillers and corners posts?

(I hate fillers, so always design as tight as I can to the room, but this can then bite me in the arse)

Not really, try to stick to standard 60mm corner posts and make fillers a maximum of 40mm (unless it's in-frame and then don't tend to use fillers at all if it can be helped, for example: we will spec a 580mm wide cabinet for a 600mm base unit going against a wall so the frame can be trimmed and scribed by 20mm or with Aisling we'll just get them to make the frame 20mm bigger on that side).

If it doesn't fit, then it's down to the customer to have that conversation with the builder, but as I said, it's usually resolved well before it gets to that stage.

bit off topic, but did you know Aisling prefer it if you extend the frames by +37mm for a scribe? if you do they can produce the kitchen quicker and it will bring down your lead time on that order VS a load of +20mm frames. as they have the lengths of +37 which they use for pelmet frame 'on the shelf'
I was only told this the other week when their Brand Manger (cant remember his name) came to the showroom for a visit

They did mention that when we were in Ireland, but to be honest I'd forgotten all about it!

That said, we are usually working on 12 weeks+ lead times for the customer needing it with anything in-frame, so it wouldn't make much difference to our orders.

The one I'm currently working on won't need it until March/April and will be ordered at the start of January, which gives us plenty of time.

mister_mitch wrote:The thought I've had today is to add a line or two in my installation section on all quotes:

- Site survey and check measure
- Detailed Installation plans - Fitting notes, Elevations, electrical and plumbing notes.

Then if somebody goes for a supply only, I can ask if they still require these two items, and then attach a value to them.
if they opt to not have a site survey and installation plans and shit hits the fan, I could then charge them for a site survey.

As an update I have started adding this extra line in this year @ £250. Just sold my first supply only, they didn't question the cost of the check measure service.
When discussing if there was anything that could be done to take the costs down, I mentioned taking out the site survey cost and their fitter can check the measurements and they insisted on keeping it in.

So this seems to work quite well, actually getting paid for some of the planning side of the job for once.

See how the next few customer take it.


I'll be charging a design fee next

Great to hear Mitch!

If everyone came together and put an end to "free" design and quotation then I think we would all be better off.... but the sheds will never do it....

Nice one! I was talking to a very good friend of mine who got me into the industry in the first place (wait a minute . . . bastard!) and we were saying that people are definitely noticing that service is worth paying for. Well done for taking the jump. Maybe try to increase the price to £350 and see how you get on ;-)

£250.00 is a small price to pay, against a room full of furniture that doesn't fit!