So earlier this week while we were sipping champagne in the office for a colleague's birthday, we were chatting about a variety of things and I mentioned my frustration with the kitchen saga. (At this point, the firm was requesting additional approval from my new boss here, which I figured meant the price was expensive not only to my ignorant-of-German-kitchen self. I asked one of the other expat partners what she had done for her kitchen and she said she, too, had originally received an even more outrageous quote than I did and which the firm immediately rejected, and ended up getting her kitchen from Mann Mobilia and purchasing her appliances separately for significantly less than the original quote. Birgit from the relocation company had also taken the kitchen place's drawing of the proposed kitchen to the company that had done the kitchen in her own house, just to get a ballpark estimate. Their estimated price was over €2,500 less than the lowest revised quote received from the kitchen dude. Hmmm....)
Well, it turns out that a few people had recently bought kitchens for their houses (read, "real kitchens" versus shoebox-size apartment kitchens). They didn't pay nearly so much for their kitchens and were shocked at the estimate. IKEA and Mann Mobilia were both mentioned as having good quality solutions. I did some quick research on IKEA and knew they were right at least for pricing and the expat partner was clearly pleased with Mann Mobilia, so figured it was time to move on to different options for the kitchen. So I faxed the kitchen dude a letter thanking him for his time and creative solutions, but the difference between his quote and what the firm was willing to pay (particularly since we have a moratorium on all capital projects within our own office) was simply too far and the firm had declined to approve his latest quotation.
I figured this would be the end of that saga and I would move on to a different saga with Mann Mobilia or something. Well, the kitchen dude called me up and asked what the firm's budget was. I said I didn't know (which was true, though I had some idea), so I gave him an estimate that was about half of his prior offer. There was a long pause. And then, "Oh.... Well, let me take a look at some other options. Perhaps we could use less expensive appliances. Have you heard of Whirlpool?" Oooooh, them's fightin' words if you're going to dis a Chicago client!! So he put together a new quote that was right around the estimated budget amount and he walked me through the changes on Friday afternoon. In a nutshell, there are slightly fewer cabinets and the appliances are downgraded and no longer cleverly concealed behind cabinet facings, but I think it'll be fine. I went to Mann Mobilia today to check out a sale they were having and it was a madhouse. Perhaps it's a bit more normal on a weekday, but I don't relish the idea of figuring out a plan there. And the sale was only for the kitchens they had there and they couldn't start on a design from me without specific measurements. Cross your fingers that the firm approves the kitchen dude's quote -- which also includes provision of a kitchenette, which is some sort of all-in-one sink/stove unit that would at least allow me to cook before the kitchen is available in some 4-5 more weeks.
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