Case Study - NBK Norwich Bathrooms & Kitchens
Monday 02 June 2026
I started out as a plumber, fitting bathrooms myself, and I have now been trading for 28 years. In 2028 we will celebrate our 30th birthday, which feels like quite a milestone. What I am proudest of is that some of my very first bathroom customers, from right back when I started out, still seek out NBK today for further work off the back of those rooms I installed all those years ago. That, to me, says everything about the kind of business we have set out to build.
Today NBK operates from three locations across Norfolk: our showroom on Heigham Street in Norwich, our showroom on Vinces Road in Diss, and our head office and kitchen workshop on Pinetrees Road in Sprowston. The business has grown, evolved and refined itself over the years, and like everyone we have adapted again recently as customers think more carefully about how they spend their money. Through all of it, one thing has stayed the same: we remain true to our customers. We focus on high end customer service, we listen, and we deliver on our promises. Our reviews tend to focus on exactly that: the service in the showroom, during the installation and from the project management team. We are consistent, and consistency is what builds trust.
Why we joined Norfolk Trusted Trader
For us, joining was mostly about being recognised as a genuine and trustworthy business, and being able to show homeowners across Norfolk and Suffolk that our word holds real value. When someone is choosing a company to trust with their money and their home, there is often a degree of trepidation and a real unknown. Sometimes all a homeowner has to go on is how a company presents itself, how its staff come across, what the company tells them and, ultimately, the feedback from other customers.The problem is that rogue traders sometimes still win the work, perhaps on price or by over promising, and it can often end badly for the customer. Being a Trading Standards approved Trusted Trader is our way of standing out clearly and publicly on the right side of that line.
I will be honest, the vetting process surprised me, in a good way. I had expected it to be more straightforward than it was, and I was genuinely impressed by how thorough it is. Before going through it myself, I think I assumed that almost anyone could become a Trusted Trader. Now it is very clear that you have to be running your business well in absolutely every area to be allowed to join. It is an honour to be part of it, and I really appreciate the work the Trusted Trader schemes are doing.
What membership has meant
Since we joined in 2023, many customers have chosen to leave us a review on our Norfolk Trusted Trader profile, where we hold a 4.9 out of 5 rating. That has to say something. Just as importantly, it offers real reassurance to potential customers who do not yet know us, because it speaks volumes about the integrity of the business.We promote our membership wherever we can. You will find the Trusted Trader stickers and logos on our website and across our social media, inside and outside both showrooms, and on our branded vehicles. We want people to know, before they ever pick up the phone, that we have been independently vetted and approved.
Happily, we have had no complaints or review problems to deal with, so we have never needed to call on the Trusted Trader team to resolve anything. It is reassuring to know the support is there if we ever need it, but a smooth and quiet membership is exactly what we were hoping for.
“We think it should be mandatory for every business to be part of the Trusted Trader scheme. How else are we going to stamp out the traders who abuse people's trust?”
Looking ahead
We are not standing still. We are now designing and handcrafting our own kitchen and bathroom furniture right here in Norwich, and we are focused on launching our new range, Pendletons Handcrafted. Alongside that, we are working hard to manage the ever increasing cost of suppliers and materials while staying affordable for our customers, a balancing act that every quality business will recognise at the moment.We are also proud to have recently surpassed 300 Google reviews across our Norwich and Diss platforms, and we are not stopping there. Our goal is to reach 500 reviews by this time next year. For us that is not really about the numbers, it is about what those reviews represent: customers who trusted us with their homes and were glad they did.
Gareth Pendleton
Managing Director, NBK Norwich Bathrooms & Kitchens
- View NBK Norwich Bathrooms & Kitchens Norfolk Trusted Trader profile.
- Read NBK's verified customer reviews.
- If you would like to become a Trusted Trader, you can apply here
- If you are a Trusted Trader and would like to leave a case study either as text or as a video, get in touch.