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The self-storage business is developing stormily. Not only is the number of self-storage locations still increasing, but consumers are looking to rent more and more storage space. There are also numerous innovative developments within the industry. In doing so, USC is active on three different fronts. Our colleague and certified engineer Danny Schmidt is the spider in our innovation web.

Last April, the construction of a large storage park in Berlin for the company Lagerbox began. Lagerbox is among the larger self storage companies in Germany, but has a Dutch owner. Nice to be able to experience the Dutch spirit of commerce across the border as well. To our colleague Danny the honor of taking up residence in a Berlin hotel to manage the construction and logistics process.

Even if your self storage website still ranks well with the search engines and visitors become customers, it needs regular maintenance. Learn why a regular audit is critical, what you should examine, and how often you should do it.

In our newsletter we want to highlight the innovative storage world from all sides. After all, there are ongoing new developments and smart initiatives around the world that are worth sharing. In short, the start of a series of interviews with entrepreneurs from around the world. Very different, but what they all share is a great passion for self storage. We kick off with an interview with Grant Daniel, director of IBidOnStorage, an online auction site for self-storage contents.

After a 3-year absence, we were finally able to support our American colleagues again in April at the ISS Storage show in Las Vegas. The 2020 show was cancelled. The 2021 show was, by all Covid measures, a purely domestic affair. It became a great experience.

The flexible layout of our Z-Box container is a big plus, we often hear from customers. This is because our self storage containers are available as standard in no less than six different models.

Last month we discussed some tips for getting more out of the managerial role than you may think is in it. This month’s sequel focusing on social media, search engines and marketing yourself more.

One of the nice things about our profession is that we are still on the road sometimes. For example, from March 29 to 31, colleague Leo Young and I attended the AESS conference in Madrid, Spain, as USC representatives. The AESS is the Spanish trade association of self storage operators.

Delivery in York, EnglandLast month we had a delivery scheduled at Inner Space Stations . This is a company with multiple locations in and around historic York, England. The delivery of the containers had already been scheduled for February, but unfortunately due to...

The self storage industry is constantly changing. The latest software takes a lot of work off our hands by automatically filling out leases, emailing invoices, sending text messages, and so on. Tenants can now rent units and pay through websites without ever having to talk to a representative of your company.

We don’t beat around the bush, our containers are pricey to buy. There is also little or no second-hand market. This is because almost all of the 200,000 containers sold are still being used for what they were purchased for; the storage of goods. Also, our containers are not a residual product from another market, as is often the case with shipping containers.

We recently completed a container park in the northern French town of Valenciennes. This involved a park for Carrébox, owned by the family business Coisne, a household name within the French storage market. By 2020, we had delivered the first park for Carrébox. This took place during the first period of the European lockdown, the week of March 16, 2020. With a lot of effort from all parties, it was then possible, with remote guidance from us, to build the park as planned.

USC continues to grow. We regularly introduce a new employee to you.This time we turn the spotlight on…

“My name is Danny Schmidt. I have been working for USC since September 2021. But before that, I was already involved in the company. Prior to that, I spent my graduate internship here. And even before that period, for the purpose of a study tour of the University of Twente, I also carried out an assignment here.”

The tenth FEDESSA report again contains a wealth of interesting information for entrepreneurs and investors. The report was produced with the participation of more than 100 entrepreneurs from 18 European countries.

One Friday, our engineer Danny was asked if he could create new container layouts for a French customer. This one preferred to be able to offer storage units with different interior dimensions. This would allow him to meet the rental sizes commonly used in France.