KITCHEN PROS · BUYING A KITCHEN
Buying a Kitchen Without a Trade Account
Several of the best-known kitchen suppliers in the UK sell to the trade only — if you're a homeowner, you can't simply walk in and buy one. Here's how that model actually works, what it means for you, and how to buy a kitchen directly if you'd rather not go through somebody else's account.
Buy direct, no account neededHow the trade-only model works
A trade-only supplier sells through account holders — builders, joiners, fitters — rather than to the public. Prices generally aren't published; they're negotiated with each account holder, which is why two tradespeople can pay different amounts for the same unit, and why you can't look up what a kitchen costs before you talk to someone.
It's a perfectly legitimate way to run a business, and it has real advantages for the supplier and often for the fitter. It just isn't much use if you're a homeowner who wants to buy a kitchen.
The bit people don't realise
If a kitchen is bought on somebody else's trade account, the contract is between the supplier and the account holder — not you. You're not the customer. That affects who can pursue a claim if something arrives damaged, wrong, or not as described, and it means the consumer protections you'd normally rely on when buying as an individual don't apply in the way you'd expect.
In practice this is usually fine, because most jobs go fine. It matters when they don't — and it's worth knowing before, rather than after.
Your options as a homeowner
- Ask your fitter to order it. Simplest route, and if you have a joiner you trust it works well. Just be clear about who owns the order and who chases a problem.
- Use a retailer that sells to the public. The big sheds and the online kitchen suppliers will all sell to you directly, at published prices.
- Buy the parts and have someone fit them. Increasingly common, and usually the cheapest route, because you're separating the supply from the labour instead of buying them as one marked-up package.
Where we fit in
We sell to anyone — homeowners, fitters, joiners and builders — at the same published prices. There's no account to apply for and no approval step. You can price a whole kitchen on the site before you speak to a single person, and if you'd rather a trade fitted it, they can order from us on exactly the same terms.
We supply carcases, made-to-measure doors and drawer fronts, hardware and the trims that finish the job. Not worktops or appliances — those are better bought locally where you can see them.
See the unit range · what a complete kitchen includes · information for fitters and joiners.
And if you don't need a whole kitchen
If your existing cabinets are structurally sound, you may only need doors. That's a much smaller job and a much smaller bill — here's how to tell which one you need.
Kitchen Pros is an independent supplier. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any other kitchen manufacturer or retailer, and any brand names are referred to only to describe how their purchasing model differs from ours.