Anyone have any experience with them? I ordered 2 x back harnesses from them many weeks ago. I never received an order conformation and i have contacted them through email with no response twice. I am starting to wonder if they even exist.
http://alpineoutfitters.net/Secure/Scripts/default.asp

I have had only great experiences with them. They do indeed exist, but I am hearing across the forums that they got VERY backed up this racing season and have been very behind. I think they received a huge boom in customers and they hand-make everything. I'm guessing the demand was greater than they expected.

I would keep contacting them. I've found them to be great, but it's been a couple of years since I've used them.

The quality of their gear is top notch, honestly. If you have the time and patience, I would say they are worth the wait.

Hope this helps!

That eases my mind a lil but i still would like to hear back from them.

Don't blame you! Good luck and let us know if/when you hear from them I thought there was a thread on here somewhere about them, but it must have been on another forum!

I've come across their name on the internet for a long time. Everyone seems to like them well enough. But that kind of service would really grind my gears. I kind of have a hard time understanding how a person could let a business get overwhelmed to that point. Not to mention the support you seem to be getting. Don't mind me, selling cars taught me a lot about customer service and retention.

Maybe I should get around to figuring out how to sew from the measurements alone.

Claudia had placed an order for 1 x-back in Dec and she just got her order the end of last week just in time for our snowshoe trip, check out ginger in her new red harness! i have ordered from them in the past as well and thought it was great. i also know Len is waiting on his harness as well, maybe the 2 of you can get together and hound them!
i just ordered my skijoring belt and a bike line from these guys http://stores.adanacsleds.com/StoreFront.bok and they ran a few weeks cause the belts were out of stock but i think the lines are much better then alpine, they use a heaver bungee cord so the pull is even less, i loved them this weekend, check out my pics wearing it.

I've ordered from them and have nothing but good things to say about them. I ordered an x back harness in December 2009 and received it the same month that I ordered it. I corresponded with the company via email several times and they were very helpful, prompt and courteous. It was a pleasure to do business with them, the product arrived quickly (I think I received it 2 or 3 weeks after placing my order), and the product fit my dog perfectly.

This time of year they typically get backed up on orders because of everyone ordering for the races and sledding season. As Tori mentioned, there is a discussion on another forum about their backup on orders as well due to not only a bunch of orders but someone said that one of their workers was out sick or something.

They are definitely a good company that'd I recommend and would order from again, just be patient if you can. And try to order outside of the busy season if you want products quickly.

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I had the same issue with them last year... I purchased the X backs and waited and wanited and waited. Didn't get anything until like Feb! They wouldn't respond to emails at all and eventually I got really pissed off and tried to revoke my payment via paypal. They finally emailed back and sent out the order that night. Was here within 3 days.

I'm glad they've worked for you guys but i'd never order from them again, that really pissed me off.

Here4thePics wrote:

According to my account info my order is still pending. (aka still not started)

That doesn't get updated very well. When I ordered from them I checked frequently on the status which always said pending. Just to see if it would ever change, I logged in AFTER I received the product and checked the status. It still said pending and I had my order in my hot little hands.

Yes, Alpine Outfitters have good quality stuff. I placed my x-back harness and scooter line on December 4, 2010. I thought to have it before Christmas. I emailed and left a message and didn't get a reply back until 3 days later via email. They said they got backed up with a lot of orders for the racing season, and was going to get it shipped soon. They offered to send the scooter line with free priority shipping. But then when that wasn't received after 5 days (California to Colorado), they said it must have gotten lost in the mail and sent another one.

They said they also had a seamstress out sick which backed up all the orders even more so. I finally got my x-back harness on January 20th with another scooter line (I think they forgot they sent one out to me already), and send it free priority shipping.

All I can say is if you haven't heard from them, be persistent in calling and sending 'urgent' emails. They will eventually respond. I think they fill orders according to priority, not as they come in. I told a little white lie and said I had plans to go skijoring and wanted my own equipment so the harness fit right...and if I wasn't going to get my order in time, I wanted to cancel it and I'd order from somewhere else.to make sure I received it in time. They said I would get it and I did a week later, free priority shipping!

....oh, I forgot to mention, I do like their stuff. It is good quality...just keep on them.

Sent a third email that was a little less than nice and got a response. They said they will get right on checking my order and reply back shortly. Another funny thing i got a response back within a few minutes after writing the email. Its ashame you have to be some what rude to get any assistance these days.

Sorry to hear you're not having a good experience with them. I corresponded with them several times before and after I placed my order via email and they were always quick to respond and helpful.

BONFIRE HUSKIES wrote:

Sent a third email that was a little less than nice and got a response. They said they will get right on checking my order and reply back shortly. Another funny thing i got a response back within a few minutes after writing the email. Its ashame you have to be some what rude to get any assistance these days.

It is unfortunate, but they are a small shop and they make everything themselves...and I totally support the small business, but..

Anyway, keep on them. If they don't get back to you by the next day, call/email them back.

They are always really busy this time of year. It took us almost a month and a half to get our order last year. But they came, and I wouldn't order anywhere else! I Have two X back harness's and two Urban Mushing Harness's from them.

Sometimes to get a great product, it's worth the wait. I think my order was estimated at 27 days or something. People always wait til the last minute! heheh It is racing season!

Although these posts are a bit old, please allow me to address your comments made regarding Alpine Outfitters. My name is Bruce Stegmaier; my wife Joyce and I have owned Alpine Outfitters (AO) for about two years now (AO has been in business for 24 years). We take your comments to heart, and we sincerely apologize for any unsatisfactory experience you may have experienced with our Company. We bought AO because of their reputation for great quality, handcrafted products. Timely order fulfillment and responsive customer service however, were an “opportunity” for AO and we’ve been working hard to address those opportunities. Our priority is to turn out a high-quality, handcrafted product consistently, and to do so efficiently to minimize delivery time. Since taking over two years ago, our business has increased significantly, which we are thankful for. Unfortunately, during the busy season, we are truly swamped, more so than ever before. We apologize if there have been long waits, and even more so, if you did not receive a timely response to your phone or e-mail inquiries regarding your order status.

Following is what we what we have done thus far and will do to improve order turn-around time and to significantly improve our level of customer service.

TURNAROUND TIME – Harnesses are the only reason an order ever takes more than 2 weeks during off-season and more than 3 – 5 weeks mid-season. The rest of an order, such as ganglines and scooter lines, are always ready to go on time; the entire order is held up however, if it includes a harness. The main reason for the harness delay is that, unlike most of our competitors, all of our harnesses are custom made to each dog’s specific measurements. We do not currently offer standard size, off-the-shelf harnesses; our harnesses are made for your dog when you order, which provides maximum comfort, safety and performance. AO harnesses require a skilled seamstress to make them properly. Two years ago we had two seamstresses; we have since added two more and we are currently training two more. These factors combined with the large volume of harnesses we sell cause us to fall behind during peak season.

To be more prepared to handle demand next season, we are introducing standard size harnesses to our line-up. Custom crafted harnesses made to each dog’s specific measurements will always be our hallmark and we believe they set us apart. If however, one is not willing to wait, we’ll have the same high quality, but standard size, harnesses readily available for immediate shipment. This will minimize order fulfillment time at all times of the year, not just during peak season. This in combination with additional skilled seamstresses will have us more prepared for next season.

CUSTOMER SERVICE – Effective immediately, Joyce will personally handle all customer service calls, e-mails and general inquiries so our customers will be assured a timely response. Our Customer Service contact information is as follows:

E-mail: customerservice@alpineoutfitters.net , or, joyce@alpineoutfitters.net
Phone: 360-659-3800

Again, please accept our apologies if you have had to wait too long or were not responded to quickly or at all. We appreciate and value your patronage and wish to continue serving you for years to come. Please let Joyce or I know if there is anything we can do, in addition to what I have described above, to serve you better. Feel free to contact me as well at bruce@alpineoutfitters.net, or call my cell at 714-504-4484.

Sincerely,

Bruce Stegmaier
Alpine Outfitters

Bruce,
thank you so much for taking the time to post on our site, I know we have sent many to your company for harnesses and i feel bad when they come back saying how long it is taking and most of us try to stick up for you and remind people it is custom and peak season. I am happy to hear of all the improvements you are making to turn around the time it takes to do the harness. i hope our members will give you all a 2nd chance to show us these improvements so we can get out faster with our huskies in their new harness.