‘Storage Wars’ Stars Dan & Laura Dotson Reveal How Show Saved Their Marriage

More Storage Wars are on the block as the popular A&E series returns for Season 16 on June 7. And there is great news for fans because each episode is going to be longer – an hour long! As always, the hunt is on for the most valuable locker over the course of 10 all-new episodes. The high-stakes battle for bidding supremacy all comes down to a keen eye, skill and approach to locking down valuable abandoned and repossessed property. And doing it while only getting a glimpse of what treasures (or trash) these units truly have. 

Among the familiar faces looking for their next big score are Brandi Passante, Dave Hester, Kenny Crossley, Ivy Calvin and his sons, Rene and Casey Nezhoda, Lisa Delarios, and Dusty Riach. Auctioneers Dan and Laura Dotson facilitate all the action with these big personalities, watching the drama unfold firsthand. The couple has been fixtures on the show since its inception. 

Here the pair open up about their relationship and tease the excitement ahead.   

Hard to believe we’re going into Season 16. How do you feel about the success of the show? 

Dan Dotson: It’s surreal. It just seems like yesterday where we were thinking if we can just get a sizzle reel, this would be great. If we could get a few more shows. It has been a trip. 

Laura Dotson: We thought the world would just love this. Then when the first season was such a hit and the second season. It has been something so thrilling in our lives. Like an auction phenomenon. It has been bringing the light on auctions, the modern day treasure hunt, the underground world of storage. What’s in the box? It’s all driving this. What’s in the box?! 

Dan: We’ve had a blast. We have a lot of the OGs filtering in and out of the show. 

Laura: People love when the fan-favorites come in like Brandi, Kenny or Ivy. You’re going to see some familiar faces from past seasons like Lisa and Dusty or the skilled buyer like Rene. Some maybe you’re not going to be so excited to see, but there are some crazy fan-favorites who return. I’m excited because the lady gets paid…don’t forget to pay the lady. 

Dan: Laura never gets tired of saying don’t forget to pay the lady. Whether there is a camera on her or not, with a flip of the wrist with her palm up. Don’t forget to pay the lady. 

Laura: People will come up to me and what they want to do is put money in my hands and pay the lady. 

How is it traveling together after all this time? What aren’t we seeing during production on your travels? 

Laura: I love that! One thing is Danny and I just you see on the show together almost all the time. The show has afforded that. You don’t see us going auction to auction and hours on the road and eating in our car. 

Dan: On TV we seem to get along 99.9 percent of the time. In reality, that is not true. There are a percent or two I do what I’m not supposed to do. Then she needs to help me in the car and help me drive. My little helper. 

Laura: I’m the navigator to make sure he is ready to go. If we’re lost, it’s my fault. No, we had such a good time. It has been wonderful. We used to have to do our auctions separately and come home in the evening after an eight-hour day and do three or four auctions each. 

Dan: Storage Wars saved our marriage. 

Laura: Hallelujah! We’re best friends. We like working together. 

Dan: Before the show came along, we were each off driving 200 miles a day each. Since 2010 and the show, we’ve gotten to spend all our time together. To some people, that might sound like torture but it hasn’t been. It has been a blessing. We’re super happy to have that time together as friends and lovers. We have a lot of stuff happening. When we get to film, it’s another feather in our cap and what we enjoy doing. Of course, we enjoy the money. We need the money, but it’s nice to stay relevant and out there.

Laura: With the show, it shows people out there they can be modern day treasure hunters. They can go out there and battle for the most valuable units just as you see on the show. The auction action is intense. 

Dan: When there are no cameras around, there are still buyers around. The buyers you see on the show, most of them we see at our auctions. When there isn’t a camera around, sometimes funny stuff happens, we think. Like when Dusty shows up with his hair straight up on top of his head. I wish he’d show up like this all the time. He has the eye of the tiger. When he is in the dirty Dusty mode, that guy is relentless. He has brought a fun auction battle to the show. He is intense and really skilled and a new father. That’s something you’re going to see. I don’t know if I should let the cat out of the bag, but it has been really fun. You’re going to see next-generation from the buyers to even our son being a fourth-generation auctioneer getting to be on the show and show their auction and buying abilities. It has been a fun time and don’t see an end in sight. People love to see what’s in the unit and who won the most valuable unit. 

What can you tease about the reveals? 

Laura; Recently, we had a unit not on the show with a skunk or mannequin. We sold a unit that had hundreds and hundreds of pairs of shoes. You’re thinking these are great and have great resale value. But every shoe was a left shoe. That was a dud. 

Dan: We don’t get in on the excavations and film the auctions. The buyers take over and do the excavations and evaluations. We’ve heard some pretty great stories though. 

Laura: What we see from the door. We do this year get involved in one for the appraisals because it’s right down Danny’s alley. It brings in the behind the scenes of what Danny is about and we’re about. I don’t want to give it away, but it is truly wonderful. 

How is it having the one-hour format this season? 

Laura; It’s better. You get to see going into the unit longer. These buyers used more of the strategy and what they’ve deciphered at the door and what was going through their minds when they were packing these units. Then going to their appraiser. You see more of their sweat and tears. 

Dan: A bit more drama. 

Laura: Yeah because there is actual time for you to see it. How hard it was for them. 

Dan: It was pretty tough on production to stuff our show into 22 minutes before. Now we just double that. I think the viewer is going to get to immerse into everything more. 

Laura: It’s Storage Wars Saturday. 

Dan: It’s amazing how many families get together to talk Storage Wars. That was one of the original byproducts that hit Laura so warmly in our hearts. 

Laura: The families that tell us we brought them to the dinner table and had something to share and talk about. They go through their garages. We hear from all over the country. 

Laura: You’re also going to see some fun auction antics, crazy disguise, tactics, people battling for the best units. 

Dan: Buyers always have something up their sleeve. We’ve seen it all. 

Laura: Nothing surprises us, but we still have fun going home to talk about it. 

One thing I wanted to get your thoughts about. Brandi got people excited about a crossover Pawn Stars and Storage Wars potential when she posted a photo with Kenny and Chumlee. How do you feel about Storage Wars crossing over with other shows? 

Dan: We don’t necessarily need to crossover to any other shows, but we’re open for whatever. I like everybody. So does Laura. We get along with most people. There are a lot of shows that would be interesting to do a crossover and have them come on our show. Maybe even some celebrities. Maybe having them around would be fun. 

Laura: Danny being a third generation auctioneer, he has knowledge about everything. I also am very excited because I’ve been learning from the master. 

Dan: Can you say that a little louder? 

Laura: Giving advice to buyers for people to find stuff and things that are worth has been a passion of mine. I married into this. Being with Danny for so many years has been a blessing. Our son Garrett is the future. 

Dan: He helps us with our business. He is getting excited about this. He is introduced in Season 16 and is a natural thing. All the buyers have kids. It’s interesting to see the buyer and auctioneer families expand and the business expand. 

Laura: This is going to be a really exciting season. I’m really excited for people to see it. 

Storage Wars Season 16 premiere, June 7, 9/8c, A&E