Other (among many) problems with DB involve lack of delivery (a problem with building materials), return policies, and the fact that you can probably get same prices by shopping around.

My feeling is you answered your own questions. Why do they now offer a "family" membership that can be used my non-direct family members? Why did the nearest showroom to you close? They are losing business and members, that's why. If it were a profitable business model they would be opening new showrooms and charging more money instead of offering "family" deals. The internet has changed the way everyone shops, by the time you add in their exorbitant shipping charges and arrange either a) to pick up your product or b) pay someone else to pick it up you could have had it delivered for free by a local shop or shipped with no shipping charges from an online supplier

I was under the impression that shipping was low cost/free since they've moved more to the online platform. If I would have to go pick everything up, then obviously that would not work since I live nearly 3 hours away from the nearest shipping department.

For $800, I would do it. Look into that carefully, though, as I understood it was only for children of the original member.

They don't sell building materials here, such as lumber, concrete, shingles, etc. There was a local supplier that dealt with siding and decking, but they got such flack from contractors they pulled out of DB. The majority of stuff you'd be able to get from them are cabinets, lighting, plumbing and flooring. Finishing stuff. But they only have certain brands, so if it's not the brand you were looking for, then it's not a deal. There are local window companies that offer a DB "discount", but their prices were the same as not going through DB once you added on all the fees, etc.

They claim that the sign up fee covers their overhead because they don't make money on the purchases. But that's BS. They make 8% on everything you buy. I am pretty sure the sign up fee is to sort of lock you into buying from them. People have the feeling like they bought the membership, they have to buy more in order to make the membership worthwhile. There's a lot of stuff that's "slightly" cheaper at DB, but not a lot, and I have to weigh whether it's worth having to deal with DB, the longer lead times, not being able to return things, etc. I imagine a lot of people think "well, I am only saving $20, but I have to use the membership I paid for." And that amounts to a lot more stuff with an 8% profit for DB. With only $800 to "make up", I think it's probably worth it.

I am actually only able to buy about a third of their stuff through the website. I have done the cabinets mostly through email. But the final order needed my signature in a million spots, so I couldn't hold them responsible for screw ups. And my account doesn't allow for credit card payments unless the item is online. So I have to go in to pay for stuff. So if you don't have a local depot, that may be a problem. You may also be paying a whole lot more for shipping, because you'll pay for shipping to their depot 2.5 hours away, and then again to get it to you.

Oh, and some stuff I order online, I still need to go pick up at their warehouse.

Sorry, typing my long winded response I missed your follow up. Even with online orders, there's shipping charges. And about half the time, that shipping charge only gets it to the local warehouse, I still need to go pick up the item.

Thank you for your detailed response, amberm! I don't think it's going to be a good fit for me, because I'm simply not going to drive that far to pick things up and "no returns" policy really bothers me. Thank you so much for helping me make my decision!

It's not a solid "no returns" policy. It depends on the manufacturer. But you have to contact DB, and get a return authorization. It's not like going back to Lowe's.

I think the lack of local office is the biggest impediment for you. I know there's a city 3 hours from here, and there's always a rule that if you're in town, you need to pick up with 3 days or you start paying storage fees (which is annoying when there's no clue when stuff will arrive) but the people 3 hours away have an extra few days grace. So they are still expected to pick up.

Home Depot and Lowes and Menards ALL have extensive on-line ordering and custom ordering and they deliver to your building site. So do some regional lumber yards.

They can beat DB's prices and policies, hands down, and are far more reasonable to deal with.

Why would anyone pay $800 for the priviledge of paying more than a local supplier, with MUCH more hassle on the logistics end? With limited selection to boot.

I'm in Canada, so the Home Depot and Lowes prices might be better down there. But other than one-off bulk buys, I'm finding the big boxes to be the worst prices locally. Local lumber yards have better prices, but aren't open weekends. And the big boxes only carry limited selection, too, they don't have ALL brands.

Sophie, I find your comment to be very rude. You're not helping the op who has already decided, you're just slapping anyone who has a membership. I'm not a moron. I bought my membership because I saved a little on the cabinets, once I paid for the membership, and now I have it and I have another source to look for materials. If I don't save money (enough to make it worth dealing with them) or they don't have what I want, I don't buy from them.

kaciad, if your aunt has the membership, and you're only dealing with them online, for the few things you'd buy from them, you can have your aunt buy them if they'll ship to your house. The only reason to have your own membership is to be allowed to go into the office, to pick up your own stuff. None of which you want to do anyway. She'd have to use her own credit card, but you'd probably be buying small stuff anyway if $800 isn't worth it to you.

We looked into DB when we were building and determined it was a rip off. They force you to pay them for the "privilege" of seeing their pricing lists with absolutely no guarantee that the pricing through them is less than anyone else's. You can get the same "no guarantee this is the cheapest price" for free just by shopping around on your own. Our architect told us of one of his clients who used them and could only point to savings on her front door. The rest, she ended up doing better by working with local suppliers who were willing to cut her a deal as she was buying supplies for the whole house.