Timeline of Our New Warehouse
After 30 years in business, Rings & Things is getting its own building! We're leaving our current 16,000 sq ft space for an entire 28,000 sq ft warehouse. Because you, as our customer, helped us achieve this milestone, you too will reap the benefits of our new building! With more storage space, we can have more stock on hand when you order (and fewer back orders!). You'll also find a bigger, better showroom and easier parking. As an additional celebration of this milestone, we're throwing you a huge moving sale. Our current space holds room upon room of discontinued items, and we really don't want to lug them with us! We won't physically move for a few months, but now is the time to clear old stock. So we're offering you these items at 25% to 75% off. We plan to move into the new warehouse by early 2005. This timeline shows our progression of needing, buying and preparing to move into our new space.
1991 and after —
Thirteen years ago, we began leasing 16,000 square feet of space on the 9th floor of the Bon department store building in downtown Spokane, WA. Over that time, the company has tripled in stock and staff, making the space extremely tight for 70+ employees and nearly 20,000 items. Our showroom is now cozy but cramped, and the rest of the floor is less than ideal for a warehouse setup. We make the best with what we have, but we know a new home is needed.
Throughout 2003 —
Rings & Things searches Spokane for a new home.
April 7, 2004 — 
"Today we moved two steps closer to buying the Pacific Florist building on 302 E. 2nd," Russ announces. R&T agrees that, once we've bought the building from Pacific Florist, we will lease it back to the company for three months. This will give Pacific more time to look for its own new warehouse (it had outgrown the 2nd Street building). Russ also asks R&T staff for more ideas on how to best use the new building.
May 12, 2004 —
Elizabeth Payne, an architecture instructor from Washington State University and sister of a former employee, agrees to design our new space. Elizabeth specializes in pulling together a design by brainstorming with the people involved. As a bonus, she is already a Pacific Florist customer, so she knows the building well.
Aug. 27, 2004 — 
Pacific Florist begins moving out of the building and into its new warehouse. Russ receives the key to the building, and begins meetings there with contractors and tradesmen.
Sept. 16, 2004 —
Russ and Dee meet with window representatives nearly every morning that week. It appears all the windows had been made smaller or boarded up. But we want daylight! Russ and crew realize the smaller windows are just framed into the hole and that the area surrounding the glazing is filled with fiberglass batting. It can be fixed! Other news that week is not so good: Someone has stolen blocks from the retaining wall around the parking lot (sigh).
Oct. 6, 2004 —
Russ meets with an HVAC person to examine the existing furnaces and rooftop units. He continues working with "green" building people and BetterBricks about alternative and energy-efficient methods where possible.
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— Dec. 3, 2002
Owner Russ Nobbs sends a list of preliminary requirements for a new warehouse around to the R&T staff.
Among the needs are:
— January 2004
Offer made for Pacific Florist building at 304 E. 2nd St., in downtown Spokane. It meets nearly all of our requirements, including a full 28,000 square feet of space, and is only a mile from our current location.
— June 20, 2004
Deal on the warehouse is closed; our company officially owns the building.
— Aug. 29, 2004
Russ authorizes a sprinkler contractor to begin design and work (no burning beads for us!). For insulation upgrades, Russ explores an environmentally friendly foamed-on product. He also plans for removal of the many abandoned and unused pipes hanging around the building.
— Sept. 24, 2004
"R&T no longer sits on a fortune in oil," Russ proclaims. "Well, actually the new R&T building no longer sits over a LIABILITY of a buried oil tank filled with 40-year-old, high-sulfur oil." The tank is refilled with gravel and a slurry of concrete, then the extra piping is removed and the vent pipes closed. The oil that was removed cannot be used in the continental U.S.A., but is sold to a freighter line. They will burn it when they are outside the 200-mile "border," which will reduce the environmental damage of the sulfur dioxide pollution (that becomes acid rain).
— May 2005
Rings & Things moves into its new digs. Both staff and customers become insanely happy. Russ arrives at the warehouse in high style, then recycles his ride.
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