Celebrating 52 years of kitchen design and joinery in Timaru.

Our history

Kitchens Direct started its life as Welford Joinery in 1970. Since then, we’ve been providing custom joinery to houses and commercial properties across Timaru and the wider South Island. Although we are still in the business of joinery, in 2000 we changed our name to Kitchens Direct to reflect our sole focus on high-quality, custom kitchens.

Karl TeRaki has owned Kitchens Direct since 1997. A Timaru local and trained joiner, Karl has many years’ experience in the industry as both a craftsman, kitchen designer and a business owner. He leads a growing team of expert kitchen professionals, and is proud to partner with other local businesses and tradespeople to provide an end-to-end kitchen build service.

Our team

Our team is made up of expert tradespeople, professional kitchen designers and project managers working behind the scenes to make sure everything runs smoothly with your kitchen project. Our team is growing, so get in touch about potential job opportunities in our factory or showroom.

Karl TeRaki is the owner of Kitchens Direct and a hands-on kitchen expert. He is passionate about supporting the local economy, providing mentorship to his staff and the community, and supporting Māori in business.

As a proud Ngai Tahu iwi member Karl is passionate about Māori culture, music and language. In his down time you might find him teaching Kapa Haka and acting as the Māori Liaison Officer at Craighead Diocesan School, or supporting Te Rūnanga O Arowhenua and Te Aitarakihi Multicultural Centre.

Karl is a board member of both Ngai Tahu and the South Canterbury District Health Board. He is also the Chair of both the Māori Health Advisory Committee for the South Canterbury region and He Manu Hou Bilingual Early Childhood Centre. Karl spends much of his time on projects that support health and wellbeing in Māori communities and promote Māori culture and language.

Meet the team at the Christchurch

They are now providing the Kitchens Direct, Total Solution for your residential or commercial kitchen. From design, manufacture and install - right through to coordinating your tradesmen - we make sure your kitchen build is seamless and stress free. 

Make an appointment: call 0800 534 732 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.