Three ways to buy a kitchen, three budgets, three very different experiences. I am one of the three routes, but I will present the other two without caricaturing them, including the cases where they are better than me.
When you search for 'kitchen' online, everyone wants to sell you theirs. Flat-pack promises you the price, the kitchen showroom (cuisiniste in French) promises you the 3D dream, and the artisan promises you authenticity. Nobody gives you the full picture. Here it is, with the market figures, and my opinion where it belongs.
| Criterion | Flat-pack (IKEA, DIY stores...) | Showroom (Schmidt, Mobalpa...) | Artisan (workshop) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Budget, fitted | €2,000 to €9,500 | €9,000 to €22,000 | €6,000 to €15,000 and beyond |
| Lead time | Almost immediate | 6 to 8 weeks | 6 to 12 weeks |
| Fit to the room | Standard sizes, cover and filler panels | Semi-bespoke: adjustable ranges | To the millimetre, out-of-true walls included |
| Carcass quality | Decent, varies widely by range | Good, industrial ranges | Chosen panel by panel |
| After-sales care in 10 years | Standard parts while the range exists | Depends on the shop and the range | The maker himself, 20 minutes away |
The gold-underlined words are explained on hover. All definitions are in the joinery glossary.
Let me say it plainly: flat-pack has its place, and a large one. A flat-pack kitchen from a good range, well designed and well fitted, gives real service for fifteen years. It is the right choice for a rental, a first home, or a rectangular room with straight walls where standard carcasses fit just right. Last year, a couple from the valley called me about a kitchen for a studio meant for holiday letting: I advised them to keep their IKEA project and to take care over the fitting. Putting me to work on it would have been a waste. Flat-pack's weak point is not quality, it is everything that is left to you: design, ordering, taking delivery, assembly and coordinating the trades.
And this is where I can step in without it being a bespoke job: I fit flat-pack kitchens, adjust them, and build the pieces that are missing against the walls. It costs a fraction of a workshop kitchen, and the result no longer has much in common with a weekend flat-pack assembly. If that is what you need, call me anyway: I would rather build a lovely kitchen for €6,000 than no kitchen at all.
The big chains make decent kitchens and seductive 3D plans. But understand what your invoice is funding: the showroom, the salesperson and their commission, the franchise, the advertising. At €15,000, a significant share of your budget is not in your furniture.
And I will say something that ruffles feathers: between a well-fitted IKEA kit and an entry-level showroom kitchen at around €9,000, I recommend the kit. At that price point, the carcasses come out of comparable factories; the difference goes into the sales structure, not into your furniture. The showroom becomes worthwhile higher up the range, or if you want one contact who manages everything without going through an artisan.
My niche is everything the other two cannot do. A room with crooked walls in an old Bagnères house, a , a worktop return that has to work its way around a stone wall. Materials you genuinely choose: thick carcasses, solid wood or lacquered fronts, first-rate . And a single point of contact: the person who draws is the one who builds, fits, and comes back if needed ten years on. My detailed ranges are in the article how much does a bespoke kitchen cost: from €6,000 for a small single-wall kitchen to €15,000 and beyond for an exceptional kitchen, fitted, excluding appliances.
There is also a middle route nobody talks about: keeping flat-pack carcasses and entrusting me with the bespoke fronts and worktop. It is often the best value for money in this whole article.
To see what I build: bespoke kitchens, the kitchens I have already fitted and my portfolio.
Yes, and it is an excellent compromise: flat-pack carcasses, with fronts and worktop made in the workshop. You get the bespoke look for a fraction of the price. I check first that the carcasses are of good enough quality to deserve the investment.
On my projects, I coordinate: I work with trusted local tradespeople for the connections, and you keep a single point of contact from start to finish. With a flat-pack kitchen, organising each trade is up to you, and that is often where the trouble starts.
With me, you call the person who made the furniture: I remake a front, replace a drawer runner, adjust a door. With a kitchen showroom, after-sales care depends on the survival of the range and the shop. With flat-pack, standard parts are easy to find for a few years, then the ranges disappear.
I come and measure, we talk budget plainly, and I tell you honestly whether bespoke is justified in your home. The quote is free. I speak English, so feel free to call or write in English.
+33 6 03 57 45 47Reply within 48 hours, or in writing: contact@agencementklein.fr
