European Fitted Kitchen Prices!

[micky44]

hi guys, bit of a strange one here but will give it a shot, have you seen the prices of European fitted kitchens over here? talk about a rip off. well here is the question, would my Thai wife with ILR in the UK be allowed to ship to Thailand flat pack kitchen units as personal possessions and not get taxed to the hilt, or is it a non starter ?(not for resale but for her house ) i have some really good contacts in the UK for the units probably 90% cheaper than over here. any info would be greatly appreciated. cheers Micky.

[twoshoes]

just ask tony mick

[surayu]

people are getting hassled by shipping theyr own already worn clothes, if i was in you i would try to get what you need locally, start browsing as many places as you can, if not the same model, you might get something closer enough but not exactly "cheap", good luck!

[micky44]

just ask tony mick

spooky, i;ll take a stab in the dark, micky ?

[basjke]

Why would you bother to ship it over.Take a look at Global house or some similar shop as they have a large choice of diy kitchens.

[micky44]

Why would you bother to ship it over.Take a look at Global house or some similar shop as they have a large choice of diy kitchens.

thanks for that where are ;global house; we have been looking at kitchens all week over here ranging from 200k bht to 350k bht, i have a mate in the uk who could supply better quality as i said 90% cheaper, a container would cost about £650 from the uk, its the taxes im concerned about, cheers,

Edited February 1, 2010 by micky44

[Penkoprod]

people are getting hassled by shipping theyr own already worn clothes, if i was in you i would try to get what you need locally, start browsing as many places as you can, if not the same model, you might get something closer enough but not exactly "cheap", good luck!

You have any sources for this allegation, at all?

Cause i have heard of quite a few people on various forums that have sucessfully shipped personal belongings with just an O-A visa, or a B visa.

Others have done so using their Thai wives right. Both methods being farly hassle free

[basjke]

Why would you bother to ship it over.Take a look at Global house or some similar shop as they have a large choice of diy kitchens.

thanks for that where are ;global house; cheers,

I don't know where you are but global house is here.Homepro,homeworks etc also have a great assortment.

[surayu]

You have any sources for this allegation, at all?

Cause i have heard of quite a few people on various forums that have sucessfully shipped personal belongings with just an O-A visa, or a B visa.

Others have done so using their Thai wives right. Both methods being farly hassle free

Just using the function "search" on this particular forum might enlight you a bit more, there are also restrictions on the ways you quoted and if you are not matching those criteria you just end up having to pay what you have to, nevermind if you are a thai citizen or not, but again there are pleanty of other posts mentioning about them, better not to give the OP the illusion that using one of your quoted methods everything is going to be ok, it might and i hope for him he can, as he might also very well be confronted by an officer that do not want to recognize his rights, etc (what? in Thailand? noooo c'mon, just smiles here Penkoprod) there is more to it, so please be aware of this, do the necessary research to not to end up in an unpleasant situation, in the end, i keep my previous suggestion.

[surayu]

Micky44 if you are in Pattaya you can also try a place called "Boontavorn" or something very close to this name, they are on the Sukhumvit Road, near the hospital, some sort of Disneyland i couldn't remember the name and also there is a college with a huge sculpture of a head near the front entrance and a McDonalds, it would help to know in which city you are going to stay or the nearest big one

[Penkoprod]

Just using the function "search" on this particular forum might enlight you a bit more, there are also restrictions on the ways you quoted and if you are not matching those criteria you just end up having to pay what you have to, nevermind if you are a thai citizen or not, but again there are pleanty of other posts mentioning about them, better not to give the OP the illusion that using one of your quoted methods everything is going to be ok, it might and i hope for him he can, as he might also very well be confronted by an officer that do not want to recognize his rights, etc (what? in Thailand? noooo c'mon, just smiles here Penkoprod) there is more to it, so please be aware of this, do the necessary research to not to end up in an unpleasant situation, in the end, i keep my previous suggestion.

Well, heres a few from the first page (only) using the search function, here:

http://www.thaivisa.com/340.0.html

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Shipping-Hou...al-t263443.html

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Documents-Re...al-t222234.html

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Moving-Thail...ms-t328451.html

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Moving-Thail...ms-t328451.html

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Importing-Pe...me-t317425.html

If you bother to read them, they contain posts of people that HAVE had stuff sent via the 2 different methods used.

There are also, it has to be said, people whose opinions are that its not worth the hassle (but, quite possibly havent tried)

But.....real life, experience wins hands down, over opinions.......no?

Have you had any experience of shipping stuff to Thailand......or is what you say YOUR opinion?

I'm not having a go at you, but just see more evidence that its not such a hassle as some make out than not

[surayu]

My opinion is based on people i know that made regular expeditions and have noticed a certain negative trend going on and also on what i read around, forums included, but if you think that people telling of their troubles are just making everything up only because it doesn't match our opinion, then where is the point of keep the conversation going, i clearly remind of someone that HAS been charged tax for clothes that he/she had already worn (used, second hand) inside of her/his baggage, now i didn't wrote down the exact location of where i read that, but i am sure that other people have read that too, and i tell you i was absolutely shocked and upset about it, my impression is that sending something in or out of Thailand at the moment is a bit too much of a "gambling".

[micky44]

thanks for all the replys gone off on bit of a tangent though but reading the links i guess flat pack kitchens could not be classed as used personal goods !!!!!!!

[basjke]

thanks for all the replys gone off on bit of a tangent though but reading the links i guess flat pack kitchens could not be classed as used personal goods !!!!!!!

I'm also afraid that you almost buy a diy kitchen here for the money you would spend on shipping alone.

[micky44]

err 300kbht is £6000, shipping is £600, cost of units max £900, (but that price is retail from a mate) so you can see i hope why i asked the original question with regards to inport tax for a thai returning with personal effects

[Beardog]

err 300kbht is £6000, shipping is £600, cost of units max £900, (but that price is retail from a mate) so you can see i hope why i asked the original question with regards to inport tax for a thai returning with personal effects

If that is the actual prices you are quoting you may as well be better off with having it shipped over. Electronics I think are almost 100% tariff. I don't think wood cabinets would be near 100% there most likely is a tariff chart still available on TV. I think I may have posted a list in 2006(that has changed since then. My sunglasses were sent over at a 75% tariff. So even though the rates will show lower- When they get to Thailand you again will have to pay the Thai tax duties as well. It sounds like it would be worth checking into & I would definitely insure your shipment & do a complete inspection on the lot when it arrives. I have heard from many in the U.K. the shipping companies can be rippoffs as well as the U.S.

Good luck check out a search on Tariffs out of your home country & tariffs into Thailand on whatever search engine you like if you cannot get recent tariffs. I once had the U.S. Tariffs when I was going to ship out of Bali to the U.S. but no more & un related info to your country or this country. Good luck . Please post how you did it ,if it is cheaper I think a lot of expats may consider using this on high end furnishings opposed to some of the overpriced goods here.

[lopburi3]

Your wife may be used to western kitchens but for most Thai the old open/covered outside work area is much preferred if living in a house that provides the area. Wok cooking is splatter much and easy tile clean-up is required. Open storage is also much better than cabinet in the heat/humidity/termite infested homes here - fee air flow is a must.

[offset]

err 300kbht is £6000, shipping is £600, cost of units max £900, (but that price is retail from a mate) so you can see i hope why i asked the original question with regards to inport tax for a thai returning with personal effects

Micky

Are you quoting like for like kitchens what does the 300000B cover is it just for units only if so it must be a very big kitchen or very expensive one I have been quoted for a medium sized kitchen 380000B but that included everything Hob, Sink, Granite, Lights, Extractor fan and fitting and that was from an expensive store it was also for solid oak doors

[tutsiwarrior]

Your wife may be used to western kitchens but for most Thai the old open/covered outside work area is much preferred if living in a house that provides the area. Wok cooking is splatter much and easy tile clean-up is required. Open storage is also much better than cabinet in the heat/humidity/termite infested homes here - fee air flow is a must.

yeah...I agree, in my house we have 2 kitchens: a traditional open-air thai one upstairs on the terrace and my 'western' kitchen downstairs where I have a western style cooker and brick cupboards with a tiled counter/work top...the arrangement suits all purposes as I do most of my own cooking but the output upstairs is much greater and feeds a lot more people...

[dmax]

have you checked ouy prices at homepro ?

[sorensen]

I got my kitchen from SB furniture at MBK.

[citizen33]

I agree with the OP about the relative pricing here and in the UK. When I looked in Home Pro and Global House a few years ago, I didn't see any DIY kitchens to change my mind. What I went for in the end was solid hardwood doors in frames. I don't mean the louvre doors or the cheap plastic ones, but Home Pro had some quite nice unit fronts with matching wall units (which were complete). I built a brick plinth up to the base shelf level then put on a plywood base, a hardwood middle-shelf, and a top of thick terracotta tiles over plywood sealed with epoxy grout. It doesn't look bad but the plywood was a mistake and ended up being attacked by termites, though interestingly the hardwood doors and frames were not to their taste. I managed to rebuild the base plinth by removing the plywood, filling in the plinth with concrete and finishing with matching terracotta tiles. It looks okay and is very functional because you can splash water around at floor level without saturating any wood (the skirting boards were changed to tiles too after the termite attack). The main problem I found was the lack of drawers, and my solution was to bring some plastic ones from the UK. These are designed to fit inside kitchen units with full height doors (they slide on wooden runners in a small frame). Not quite top-notch but solid hardwood at an affordable price!

[stevejones123]

The price quoted seems absurdly high.

On the other hand flat-pack diy kitchen units made of reconstituted wood are not a good idea. When moisture gets in them they expand and eventually split.

The best thing are aluminum kitchen units (no problem with water). For the counter tops granite is best; tiles will do but the grouting will get dirty.

[citizen33]

For the counter tops granite is best; tiles will do but the grouting will get dirty.

It you do tile, use epoxy grout - it is expensive but very good. I bought some in Bangkok.

[thrawn60]

Importing kitchens can be a challenge.

I work for a kitchen company in Hua Hin and we have imported kitchens and local kitchens here. We always get the questions:

"Why are imported kitchens so expensive"

First of all the prices that you buy the kitchens in Europe as dealer is high to do that all materials and labor is European priced.

Secondly there is a shipping cost (Roughly 120.000thb for a 20" container from Italy to Thailand (Fits roughly 3-4 kitchens))

Then you have the 20% import tax on the cabinets and 15% on hinges, runners, handles and accessories.

In our case we also have the transport charge from BKK to HH, so in all the price will be higher than in Europe...

Some of the European kitchen suppliers in Bangkok are also marking the prices up way to high, just in order to be able to give a standard 35% discount as soon as you ask for some reduction in price.

But as alternative to the European kitchens there are good local alternatives, and the difference is not that big unless are are browsing for brand names or special designs, we find the most of the local suppliers to be limited in their selection of special kitchen units or up to date with the newest technology in kitchens.

Just make sure that you keep in mind that you get what you pay for, so check the insides of the cabinets, take out the shelfs and check that there are edge banding on all four sides. (lack of this can cause the shelfs to swell in the rainy season)

Check that the hinges are of a proper quality and that the doors are closing regular and not loose. It's very good to test the show kitchens since they have been standing there are you will see quickly if it's already falling apart before being used.

The runner system are different on many kitchens, but if you extend the drawer to the maximum extension and while holding the handle try to move it sideways, if it moves then the system is not installed straight and can cause problems once you have some load in the drawer and also prevent the drawer from closing smoothly. This goes for all kind of drawer runners.

It's very easy to find to identical kitchens on the outside, but there are over 30% difference in the price, and it all comes down to the material selected for the internal parts of the kitchen and of cause the hardware as hinges and drawer runners.

But as a rule of thumb the net price of an European kitchens should be around 15-20% higher than in Europe, otherwise some one either marking it up too much or have really bad deals with their supplier.

[apetley]

Hi, wifey and I have a lovely kitchen built here in Thailand.

Units were sourced here as were the appliances.

Counter tops are solid stone.

Worked out about 65k bht all in.

All you need to know is here.......

http://coolthaihouse.com/forum/viewtopic.p...0&start=390

[apetley]

So good I repeated myself!

Edited February 12, 2010 by apetley

[chrgrims]

just started reading your thread apetley, good stuff. a bit hard to find things though, because its such a huge thread.

how you can get a kitchen like that so cheap is beyond me. looks like you built it yourself?

[knightlordnz]

Hi to all have been thinking going to http://www.ikea.com.sg/store-theme/2009/kitchen/ but Ikea is coming to Thailand http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/econom...kea-to-thailand but looks like they are here well bangkok http://www.ikea.co.th/en/about-ikea/location/ well open late 2011

Edited April 28, 2010 by knightlordnz

[chrgrims]

thats all good, but we need a kitchen before that . getting an offer from a local kitchen builder now. he is building with teak, so thats the obvious problem. not sure where he gets his wood, and i dont know how i can verify the expected info about it being from a legal plantation.