Latest / USA Cabinet Store Remodeling Podcast / Fabuwood vs. Kith Cabinets: Which Fits You?

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Fabuwood vs. Kith Cabinets: Which Fits You? · USA Cabinet Store Remodeling Podcast

• 0:04
  Welcome back to The Cabinet Room, the show where
• 0:07
  we cut through the showroom sales talk and help
• 0:09
  you actually decide. I am Chris, and as always,
• 0:12
  I am joined by Jessica, who has probably looked
• 0:14
  at more cabinet spec sheets than anyone should
• 0:17
  in one lifetime. Jessica, today we are tackling
• 0:20
  a big one. Two brands people keep pitting against
• 0:23
  each other, Fabuwood and Kith. Honestly, this
• 0:26
  is one of my favorite comparisons, because on
• 0:28
  paper, these two look almost identical. Both
• 0:31
  use Bloom hardware. Both have lifetime warranties.
• 0:35
  Both do custom color matching. But once you dig
• 0:38
  in, they are solving completely different problems.
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  So if you have these two on your short list,
• 0:43
  this episode is for you. Let us start with the
• 0:46
  basics. Who are these two companies, really?
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  So Fabuwood is a semi -custom brand. They assemble
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  in New Jersey. They just opened a West Coast
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  facility in Tijuana. And their whole reputation
• 0:56
  is built on speed. They can ship a stocked kitchen
• 1:00
  in about five business days. That is the fastest
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  turnaround in the industry at this price point.
• 1:05
  Five days, that is wild. And Kith? Kith is made
• 1:08
  in Haleyville, Alabama. 100 % American -built.
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  They are a build -to -order house, so everything
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  is made fresh for your project. That gives them
• 1:17
  this incredible finish range, but it also means
• 1:19
  you are waiting three to six weeks. Sometimes
• 1:22
  longer if you go custom. Different philosophy
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  entirely. Okay, so right away we have the core
• 1:27
  tension. Speed versus customization. Let us talk
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  construction, because that is where people get
• 1:33
  nervous. Are these actually well -built? Both
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  are solid, but here is the nuance that nobody
• 1:38
  explains. Fabuwood's Allure series gives you
• 1:42
  all plywood box construction as standard, including
• 1:44
  a one -piece plywood back that resists racking
• 1:47
  under heavy stone counters. Kith's main line
• 1:50
  is plywood, too, but their value tier, Kith 1,
• 1:53
  comes standard with furniture board. Plywood
• 1:56
  is an upgrade on that line. Wait, so if someone
• 1:59
  is comparing a base kith one against a fab wood
• 2:01
  allure, they are not comparing the same thing.
• 2:04
  Exactly. That is the single most common mistake
• 2:07
  I see. You have to compare the same tier, not
• 2:11
  just the brand name. Fabuwood's floor is higher,
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  but kith's ceiling, when you step up to standard
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  kith or their mouse or luxury line, goes higher
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  than fabuwood's allure. That is a great way to
• 2:22
  put it. Fabuwood's floor is higher, kith's ceiling
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  is higher. What about the doors themselves? Big
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  difference here. Kith offers true solid hardwood
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  doors. Real maple, oak, cherry, hickory. Fabuwood
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  uses a solid wood frame with an MDF center panel,
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  and their maple look finishes are actually on
• 2:44
  birch, not true maple. So if you want genuine
• 2:47
  solid wood species, Kith is your brand. Good
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  to know. Now let us make this practical. You
• 2:53
  came up with five scenarios where the right answer
• 2:55
  flips. Walk me through them. Love this part.
• 3:00
  Scenario 1. You are on a contractor's clock.
• 3:03
  You are living through the renovation, or you
• 3:05
  are a flipper paying carrying costs every week.
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  Pick Fabbawood. That five -day lead time keeps
• 3:12
  your whole project on schedule. Kith's three
• 3:14
  -week build window can kill a tight timeline.
• 3:17
  Makes sense. Scenario 2. You have a specific
• 3:20
  finish vision. You want a hand applied glaze,
• 3:23
  a vintage treatment, An heirloom look, a custom
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  color. Pick Kith. Their finish library is deep
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  and they do hand -applied work that Fabuwood's
• 3:32
  curated palette just does not reach. So timeline
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  says Fabuwood, finish freedom says Kith. Keep
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  going. Scenario 3. You want all plywood construction
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  as your baseline. No compromises, no upgrade
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  fees. Pick Fabuwood Allure or their new Ovella
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  Frameless line. It is standard there. On Kith
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  1, you would pay extra to match it. Scenario
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  4? You want true solid maple or oak. The real
• 3:57
  wood. Pick Kith. We just covered why. Fabuwood
• 4:02
  substitutes birch. And the last one? Scenario
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  5 is the fun one because it splits. You are spexing
• 4:09
  multiple units. Flips, rentals, a builder project.
• 4:14
  Either brand works, but for different reasons.
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  Fabuwood's stocked lines and fast replenishment
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  are great for volume. But Kith 1 has a flat rate
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  model. Around $260 a linear foot, every door
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  style priced the same, which makes budgeting
• 4:29
  across 30 units really simple. That is genuinely
• 4:32
  useful. Now I want to ask the uncomfortable question
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  because this is the cabinet room and we do not
• 4:37
  dodge. What goes wrong with each brand? Good,
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  because neither is perfect. With Fabuwood, the
• 4:44
  number one complaint is paint chipping on the
• 4:46
  white painted finishes, usually within the first
• 4:48
  year or two. There is also recurring delivery
• 4:51
  damage, and the warranty claim process can be
• 4:54
  slow. Lots of photos. Sometimes shipping parts
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  back to Jersey. And Kith? With Kith, the recurring
• 5:01
  theme is wrong cabinets shipped, finished variability
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  between batches, and custom orders slipping past
• 5:07
  their quoted lead time. One homeowner had a 12
• 5:10
  -week quote turn into 16 weeks. So what is the
• 5:13
  takeaway there? Because that could scare someone
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  off both brands. The takeaway is that the dealer
• 5:18
  matters more than almost anything. A strong local
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  dealer catches spec errors before they reach
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  your house and fights your warranty claims for
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  you. A weak one just passes the problems through.
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  Since both brands are dealer -only, the dealer
• 5:31
  you choose is basically the whole experience.
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  That is the perfect note to land on. So if you
• 5:37
  had to sum it up in two sentences... Choose Fabuwood
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  if timeline matters, you want all plywood standard,
• 5:43
  and your Finnish vision lives in the mainstream.
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  Choose Kith if finish flexibility and True Solid
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  Hardwood are your top priorities and your schedule
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  can absorb the weight. Beautifully said. And
• 5:55
  quick disclosure for our listeners, IST Cabinets
• 5:58
  is an authorized Fabuwood dealer, so we know
• 6:01
  that line inside and out. We do not carry Kith
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  and we are not going to pretend otherwise. If
• 6:07
  you want to see Fabuwood finishes in person,
• 6:09
  you can visit one of our showrooms in Alexandria,
• 6:12
  Fairfax, Columbia, Houston, Roselle, or Delaware.
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  And if you want the full written breakdown, with
• 6:18
  comparison tables and all the construction details,
• 6:21
  it is all on the IST Cabinet's website. Bring
• 6:24
  your kitchen measurements, and we will put a
• 6:26
  real quote with a real lead time in front of
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  you. That is it for this episode of The Cabinet
• 6:30
  Room. Thanks for listening, and we will see you
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  next time. Take care, everybody.