As Independent Kitchen, Bathroom, Bedroom showrooms we sometimes find it difficult to get out and check out the competition. In this series of posts I want to do this for you, taking an in-depth look at the national retailers that, whether we like it or not, are taking a lot of our customers money and attention. These companies have huge marketing budgets along with a high profile national presence which makes it hard for us to compete. If you are an independent KBB retailer and you need help to stand out with your marketing, online or traditional, please contact me today I’d love to help. terry@cloud3.co.uk 07747 016264

OK let’s take a look at Magnet Kitchens!

Overview of Magnet Kitchens – August 2024

Company Overview: Magnet Kitchens is owned by Nobia, a Swedish kitchen company that was founded in 1996. Nobia acquired Magnet in 2001 for £134 million and has since invested in the company, including a showroom refurbishment program and the Trade Concept initiative. Magnet’s UK arm, Nobia Holdings UK, is headquartered in Darlington. Magnet has 195 stores nationwide with a mix of trade and retail offerings.

Financial Performance: Nobia Holdings UK’s financial report for Q2 2024 shows a turnover of SEK 3,676 (£272) million, marking a 2% organic growth. Operating profit increased to SEK 222 (£16.5) million, reflecting a significant improvement from the previous year’s SEK 52 (£3.9)million. The company’s profit margin also improved to 6.0%. However, net debt increased slightly to SEK 2,949 (219) million due to strategic investments. The company maintains a stable liquidity position, with continued focus on cost efficiency and market expansion.

Customer Perception: Magnet Kitchens enjoys a positive reputation, with a 4.1-star rating on Trustpilot from over 10,000 reviews. Magnet Kitchens generally receives positive feedback for the quality of its cabinetry and customer service, with many customers praising the durability and design of their kitchens. The in-store experience and design assistance are often highlighted as strong points. However, some customers report issues with installation, particularly when using third-party fitters, leading to inconsistencies in the final results. Post-purchase support can also be hit or miss, with some customers facing delays or difficulties in resolving problems.

Social Media Presence:

• YouTube: 1k subscribers and 37 videos, featuring kitchen designs and TV ads with one of their older videos getting over 250k views their later ones get between 50k and 1k. Last upload was over a year ago.
• Instagram: 109k followers and 1,489 posts, showcasing kitchen designs and customer projects with good interaction.
• Facebook: 84k followers and 77k likes regular posts products and offers but not much engagement.
• TikTok: 711 followers and 785 likes nice posts and OK if low views.

Finance Offers: Magnet Kitchens provides various financing options, including up to 7 years of interest-free credit, however this is only on their premium offering with a minimum deposit and value, they also offer competitive alternative financing offers.

Showroom Visit August 2024: My local store is, well, stunning, built in late 2023 it is a beautiful example of a modern fresh retail space. As I walk through the main entrance I’m greeted by an air conditioned and fragranced environment with blacked out ceiling and a lovely plant display with an illuminated ‘welcome’ sign.

However, even though there’s a reception area there’s no one there so I make my way to the first display to have a look. The display is modern and nicely presented with an island and it’s in a realistic ‘average home’ area. The quality looks good although the doors don’t feel that heavy when I open them and one of the catches wasn’t working properly. The kitchen has AEG appliances and the worktop is laminated but looks like stone.

As I continue to the next display it’s a more traditional painted shaker style with AEG appliances and quartz work surfaces, again it looks nice and it’s dressed well but it’s a fairly small display and pretty uninspiring.

Each display area has an information board with the name of the range, some finish options and a price highlighted per month, for example £2,879 or £36 a month, this is only for the units and would bear no relationship to a complete fitted kitchen, so is a little bit misleading.

I’ve been in the showroom for over 10 minutes, I’ve not seen anyone nor have I heard anyone so I continue around the showroom. The next display is a similar layout just slightly different finish with a block wood worktop and again AEG appliances.

It looks as tough there’s only 10-12 displays in total.

Finally I spot someone sitting at a desk in a separate area called ‘Design Studio’ he hasn’t seen me so I call out to him. He asks if he can help and I tell him how beautiful the showroom is and that I’ve been here for a while and looked around and was their anywhere I would have missed? He replied that this is a ‘Concept Showroom’ and it cost £1 million to build, he says he is the only person working in the store today (this would suggest this is not a busy showroom) and did I need any help. I asked if they could design supply and install a new kitchen for me, he immediately replies with ‘we’re not that competitive supply and fit, he said, I would be better to get my own fitter but he is happy to design and work with whoever I choose or he could suggest an installer.

I ask if he can come out and measure, to which I’m told I’m better off bringing my measurements in and he will design from them. I ask about worktops, he says that they only really offer laminate worktops, they can supply quartz and some composites but I’m better off buying from elsewhere as they are not competitive. I then ask about appliances, he says they can get most appliances but they don’t price match.

I tell him that I’ve visited Wren Kitchens and do they offer the same finance deals, he said they did but only on the supply. I notice a part of the showroom I had not looked at and he said that was a trade area and I’d need to sign up for a trade membership if I wanted to buy anything on that side of the showroom.

I said I really wanted a fully fitted kitchen at which he said, and I can’t believe this, ‘you need a project manager, you are better off buying from an independent kitchen showroom’!!!

He offered me a brochure and I left the showroom.

Conclusion: Magnet is a household name for quality kitchens in the UK, however, despite the lovely showroom and what their website suggests, from what the salesman was telling me and a chat I had with them afterwards via their website, they are not offering a simple retail, ‘turnkey’ solution, where you can easily buy everything in one place and get the whole kitchen fitted with tiling, electrics, worktops etc. Installers are independent and you work with them separately. It seems that they still want to work with their trade clients and push installs through these independents. From my experience they also seem to only want to sell the units and doors making them not retail friendly at all. Warranties are only for the items you buy from Magnet which does not include the fit.

If you would like to discuss the flaws I’ve found and my strategies to allow you to compete as an independent please visit my website at www.cloud3.co.uk or drop me a line at terry@cloud3.co.uk or give me a call on 07747 016264.