Self-Storage Companies - US and Canada
Delivered January 18, 2020. Contributor: Amy R.
Goals
To develop an informed marketing communications strategy by understanding key drivers that lead to the use of self-storage solutions. The current objective is to identify 5 drivers for self-storage in Canada and/or the US supported by quantitative data related to the frequency and share these reasons hold.
Early Findings
Designated Temporary Living
- Military families/singles and college students are top self-storage customer sectors (due to their temporary living circumstances).
Foreclosures/Transient Circumstances
- While it did occur several years ago, the subprime crisis and subsequent foreclosures (displaced families) boosted demand for self-storage.
Millennials
- While millennials have been slow to become homeowners, their status as renters aids self-storage use.
- As millennials age, this cohort (80 million) represents 1/3 of all non-commercial self-storage renters. This is expected to rise as millennials enter ages where they are inclined to earn more income.
Low Rental Vacancy Rates
- In US areas where it is hard to find an affordable or accessible location (especially considering millennials’ desire for more exciting metropolitan areas), the use of self-storage tends to increase.
Additional Facts
- According to research from Deloitte, today’s self-storage owners “face challenges to their future growth and margins due to increased supply and competition from new players.”
- “The self-storage national vacancy rate rose 180 basis points to 13.4% in 4Q18, the highest since 4Q13.”
Proposed next steps:
You need to be the project owner to select a next step.
We can start the research by selecting 4 drivers to apply more time in researching for quantitative data. Because the research team has identified several drivers in our initial research (i.e., home renovations, changes in relationships, business storage, downsizing, being military or college students, foreclosures/displacement, and being in an area with low rental vacancies), we recommend starting with home renovations, changes in relationships, military/college, and displacement. The team can continue the research to identify 5-7 quantitative details about each of those drivers. Note that we will prioritize primary sources like documents, reports, white papers, and survey results by/about/for storage behemoths like Public Storage, MakeSpace, Clutter, StoragVault. We will also consult media reports and available and relevant academic studies.
The research team might also be able to assist by honing in on millennials and identifying 7-10 quantitative insights about their storage usage. Note that we will prioritize primary sources like documents, reports, white papers, and survey results by/about/for storage companies like Public Storage, MakeSpace, Clutter, StoragVault. We will also consult media reports and available and relevant academic studies.
We can also look for 2-3 marketing campaigns by self-storage facilities that have targeted millennials and provide screenshot examples, an overview of the campaign, and any available metrics about the success of the campaigns.