Savvy business owners understand why buying off-the-shelf or one-size-fits-all wooden crates is rarely a good idea. Although the convenience of buying supplies from an online site may sound alluring, you'll likely end up paying dearly for what boils down to a trivial amount of time saved.
One-size-fits-all solutions rarely work for sophisticated manufacturers because their product is unique. When shipping non-durable goods via truck, rail, or sea you need to make sure it gets to the destination in one piece. That means properly securing it inside its crating.
One-size-fits-all stock solutions rarely fit your product perfectly leading to unused internal space, which leads to:
- Higher shipping fees for the extra cubic feet
- Cost for extra padding/filler to fill-in void space inside
- Cost of labor for the extra time needed to properly package the product
- Cost of labor for assembling flat-pack boxes
Customization of Wood Crates
The inventory of wooden crates at many online sites is not diverse. Sure, online sites may appear to have lots of inventory, but it might not be exactly the size you need. When purchasing through online sites if you can’t find what you’re looking for, it’s unlikely that customization will be a budget-friendly option. 
So what's the answer? Typically custom-sized wooden crates or custom internal support. For custom - try contacting a local company that offers crate manufacturing.
One such company Valley Box, located in San Diego, CA,
has wood crate experts ready to discuss your product needs.
They can quickly quote custom wood crate solutions for your product requirements. Go to your search engine and type in "wood crates [plus your zip code]" to find the nearest company that offers wood crate manufacturing.
Bulk pricing
The best pricing on wooden crates can first be determined by volume. In other words, you'll need to determine your purchase quantities. Companies that offer crate manufacturing will be able to extend their best pricing when you're buying in larger quantities.
When buying from an online site keep in mind the markup on items is incredible. According to Forbes Magazine, many retailers use a minimum 50% markup. This means that you will end up paying double the amount of what your wood crates are worth. Another great reason to work directly with a company that offers crate manufacturing.
Some Assembly Required
When you buy wood crates online they arrive flat and require assembly. Having your employees assemble these crates has a monetary impact because of the labor needed to get the crate into a usable form.
When you buy wooden crates from a company that offers crate manufacturing you can decide whether the crates arrive assembled or in a kitted flat variation. These kitted versions can be assembled and then unassembled for storage purposes and to reduce the amount of square footage required for storing crates.
Answers to Your Questions
While you might find the ease of ordering online convenient when it comes down to your critical crating concerns, the person on the other side of the online chat is not a packaging expert with knowledge and experience in that one given area.
The professionals at a local crate manufacturer will often have years or even decades of experience in the multifaceted industry of wood crates. They can help answer your questions and make suggestions about different types of material or fasteners. All of which can help you save a considerable amount of cash, in the end.
Made in America
The importance of buying products manufactured in America goes without saying, but we’ll say it anyway—buying American-made products supports American manufacturing jobs and employment. This not only reduces the unemployment rate but it expands the tax base to pay for benefits such as Social Security and Medicare. Simply put, buying American supports a more stable America.
When buying one-size-fits-all wooden crates online it's hard to be sure that the crates were made in the USA. If you come across an online seller of wood crates and they do not proudly display the coveted “Made in America” or “Made in the USA” seal, chances are some or all of their products were manufactured somewhere else.
