To view our lockers, bleachers, rivet & steel shelving, storage, safety & security cabinets, service & utility carts, platform trucks, commercial & industrial mats & other storage products, please visit our Web Showroom.

Frequently Asked Questions

This FAQ isn't intended to be that comprehensive. Need specific info? Simply call us. Our guys will blow you away with product knowledge, and they're not afraid of phones. They know an educated customer is valuable to all of us.

What follows are some typical questions we get asked all the time. We've also added a couple questions (and answers) to atypical questions that people actually had the cajones to ask us.

You can also use our online contact form to ask us questions via -email.

» Should I order lockers assembled or unassembled?

That depends. Do you have a handy maintenance crew? Do you have the budget for professional assembly? Saving money on unassembled lockers isn't much of a savings if the assembly becomes a nightmare for your staff. And we can always arrange on-site assembly and installation for you.

We also produced a couple locker assembly videos to see what it takes to assemble both standard three-wide and open face stadium lockers.

Bear in mind that unassembled (KD, or "knocked down") lockers ship class 70, while assembled lockers ship class 125. The higher the freight class, the more expensive the freight. Click here to view locker assembly instructions. If they make sense to you, consider saving some money by assembling the lockers yourself.

» What is the typical lead time for production orders?

That depends mainly when you order your product. Standard lead time for most of the year is four to six weeks from time of order placement. However, during "locker season" (April-September) lead times can be as long as 10 or 12 weeks. If you're a school and need new lockers by the beginning of the school year, the time to place your order is early spring.

We keep a list of manufacturer current locker lead times on-line. We also keep it current, and the information is reasonably accurate. If you're on a tight production schedule and need specific lead time information about our shelving, bleacher, cabinet or other products, call us at (877) 452-6900.

» What happens if I receive a damaged order, the wrong parts or defective merchandise? Not that that ever happens in your industry. But if it did?

Our wonderful Customer Service Department will assist you with these and any other service and product-related issues. Know in advance that we carefully review your order with you prior to shipment to ensure that you're ordering the right product. Before you order is shipped, we provide you with freight receiving instructions so you understand the freight process as well as your and our responsibilities. And should there be any problems, we'll be there to assist you in getting through the process in one piece.

We have the right team for this business. We actually care about customer satisfaction and place a premium on it. Our reps see themselves as a potent team and often share resources and work together when needed. They have a friendly competitive spirit that keeps the group dynamic interesting. If you call our reps on one of those days when they really want another sale to get or stay in front of the pack, you would probably benefit substantially. But you'd have to call them in order to conduct this little test. The number to call is (877) 452-6900.

» Why does your catalog say "submit quote" instead of "place order"?

We deal with heavy products transported by commercial carriers. With multiple distribution centers and carriers, there is currently no way for us to incorporate real-time shipping quotes for such cargo into the quotation/ordering process.

This also gives us an opportunity to save you money on freight. We have a nationwide distribution network. If you're on the west coast, it makes sense to ship you lockers from Utah instead of North Carolina or Memphis. Your "quote request" is an opportunity for us to determine the best distribution point and best freight rate for you.

After submitting a quote, within 24 hours you'll receive a comprehensive quotation--including freight--for the products you added to the cart. You can then decide whether to order the products or not.

» Can product be shipped residential?

Yes. And if your product meets certain residential carrier guidelines, we can save you substantially while shipping factory-assembled product that's ready to go. If you want to see some products that ship quickly and affordably, check out our Quick-Ship Program.

» Where can I find an installer?

Simple--we'll do it for you. Click here for information about our factory-authorized installers.

We have also done enough install jobs that we know who is good and who isn't. It's in our interest to keep you satisfied at every stage of the process, especially in matching you up with an appropriate installer.

» Do you offer credit?

No. If you're a contractor, it's "hell no". We tried it, didn't always work out so well. For some reason, there is a percentage of the populace--albiet small--who for whatever reason doesn't think they have to pay the balance due after the product has arrived.

But if you have good credit history and can submit a PO with a 50% down payment, we have a way to accomplish that. Call one of our reps at (877) 452-6900 and they'll be glad to discuss the options with you.

» Is "quick ship" really quick?

The whole concept of Quick Ship is changing. Manufacturers have in the past offered quick-ship programs, typically not too quick. This is no longer true with all manufacturers.

Quick-ship has changed so much that we devoted a section to our Quick Ship Program. Lots of good info over there.

The not-so-frequently-asked-but-nevertheless-asked questions:

People did ask us these actual questions. The answers that follow here weren't our actual replies to them at the time, but rather are retrospective thoughts on the questions originally posed.

» You're ruining the market. Why are you doing this?

To put this question in context, Big Dog was being accused by a manufacturer representative of undercutting everyone else on price to gain market share, in turn damaging the market for everyone else.

If selling lockers and shelving at lower margins without sacrificing customer service means satisfied customers, repeat business and profits through economies of scale, then yes, we're guilty as charged.

There are those companies who understand web consumers and those who don't. Web consumers are people, not keystrokes or e-mail inquiry forms. Even some web-based companies in this market don't seem to understand the Internet all that well. Some stocking distributors and the district managers who serve them refuse to acknowledge that the vast majority of products in the material handling industry will eventually be moved online and not through their decades-old methods of distribution.

Ever see a tired old dog that's real sick and you'd love to put it out of its misery but just can't muster up the heart to do it? That's how we feel in part about some of the archaic remnants that still lurk around this industry. But times are changing, and we're excited about the new breed of manufacturers that are starting to emerge and are providing elements of a much needed revitalization of our industry.

» Do you spell that D-o-g or D-a-w-g?

Sadly enough, over the past four years we've have had to endure this question a few dozen times, each subsequent time increasing our conviction that the English language is in real big trouble.

By the way, we usually answer that question with "It's spelled D-o-g, as in 'Dog'."

» Why would you post something like that online?

This question came from a manufacturer national sales manager in response to the posting of our State of the Locker Industry address. If you've read it in the past, it's since been updated so it has some new stuff. The old version that raised so much paranoia from manufacturers has since been put out to pasture. In this rapidly changing market, that particular article no longer accurately describes all of the positive changes that have occurred since the original post.

In the original we pointed out some of the shortcomings our industry has. This wasn't meant to embarass anyone, but to draw attention to the issues that affect our customers. Sometimes things needed to get put in the light regardless of how dark they might appear. Some people call that honesty, and our customers deserve nothing less than that.

When we got into this industry we scoured the internet for good, useful information about lockers and shelving. We came across countless sites, all containing the same old tired wording copied and pasted from manufacturer catalogs. It was about as exciting as the migration pattern of the African Flukeworm. And it was apparent that we weren't going to learn anything online beyond why Locker A is built this way and why Locker B only comes in three-wide configurations. If real information useful to customers was going to be made available, we'd have to write it ourselves, and we did.

No one comes remotely close to providing the type of content we provide that we feel you need to make educated decisions. Some of our customers already well know lockers (or shelving, or bleachers). But most fall somewhere on a continuum that varies greatly, and it's incumbent on us to determine where the customer is on the knowledge scale and provide the education necessary to prepare them to make logical product choices based on knowledge and options.

Hopefully you'll find our industry-related articles to be enjoyable as well as informative. And don't forget that our factory-trained sales reps are repositories of knowledge themselves. Give one of them a call at (877) 452-6900 and try to stump one of them. They enjoy challenges.

That's it for now. It's locker season and the phones are ringing like crazy. All of our hard work over the past four years is coming together in an incredible way. We have a great staff, and though we get on each others nerves at times it's because we care about each other and value getting our jobs done correctly.

If you've read this far, thank you. Earning your trust and your business is very important to us. We want the opportunity to exceed your expectations.

We came into this industry seeing the need for plenty of change. We are throwing around a lot of fresh air and our customers tell us that it's much appreciated.

Copyright 2004-2008 • Big Dog Warehouse, Inc. ® All Rights Reserved