So, you are planning to install your new kitchen. Excellent! One thing that in today’s digital age confuses many people is the decision of whether to go store brand hunting or order an online brand. Age-old beliefs and thought patterns can hinder your ability to get your perfect kitchen quickly, easily, and saving a bundle of cash at the same time.
Store Brands – The Traditional Way
Traditionally, most people have gone to a store when beginning to hunt for kitchen cabinets. Even this method has changed radically in recent years, as big-box retailers have mostly forced all the mom-and-pop shops out of business. It is rare to find a physical store dedicated to cabinets anymore, unless it is super high end, with products close to the cost of custom. That being said, many people still have it in their heads that ordering their kitchen in person and getting it from an actual brick and mortar store is somehow better and will make everything easier, even though it costs just a little bit more. Nothing, in fact, could be further from the truth.
Online Brands – The New Option
It is true that it is more of a recent development for online kitchen cabinet brands to be of equal or higher quality than store-bought brands, but for the last ten years or so there has been a boom of quality and low prices for cabinetry bought online. For example, RTA Cabinet Store has been on the market for more than six years, and they began with the same ideas they have now, the best quality available at the cheapest prices. Kitchen cabinets bought online usually come in the form of RTA cabinets, and they are a fantastic buy for just about any price range. They tend to be between 15 and 50 percent cheaper than the cabinets you can buy in the store.
What Are the Advantages?
Let’s go in order. The advantages of store brands over online brands are few, but significant. The primary advantage is the ability to go touch and see with your own eyes the kitchens and materials they are made from. It gives you an excellent idea of exactly how your final kitchen will look. It also allows you to (sometimes) go and pick up replacement parts whenever you feel like it, without waiting on shipping. Another benefit is the lack of needing to educate yourself on cabinets. When shopping online, it is a good idea to learn the different materials and substrates that make up the cabinets, learning what makes a good cabinet, so that you can check the specifications before ordering. While this is a good idea before you go shopping around town, it is not strictly necessary because you will be able to see and feel the differences in person.
The advantages of online brands as compared to store brands are more than a few. First is the price difference. An online brand will beat a store brand, at the same quality, literally almost every time. This is because of all the overhead costs that come with keeping a physical store running. The second is ease. It is much easier to sit in front of your computer and check out kitchen cabinets online. You can do it any time you like, and it doesn’t cost much effort, or time. The third is online retailer reputation. To break into the market, most online retailers have had to have sterling reputations, great customer service, and fantastic quality products to fight and defeat traditional notions of buying cabinets. This works in the customers favor in a major way.
