How The Self-Storage Industry Is Perceived In The UK

Self-storage facilities are booming in the UK. Storage space in London, for example, is quite important as the city becomes more and more populated. According to the annual report of The Self-Storage Association made in 2019, the UK makes up 46% of all European self-storage space. With this in mind, we can see the relevance of storage units for the livelihood of many people in the country due to it having 1,582 stores in the entire land.

For those who are intrigued and are oddly unfamiliar with the said business, here are some common questions that we have collected to feed your curiosity:

 

Who are the ones availing storage units?

 

Based on the 2019 report, couples are more likely to use self-storages compared to people living alone. And to debunk a certain stereotype, having more people in the household does not increase the likelihood of them using self-storage, unlike many people believed. Concerning the gender of those who are availing storage facilities, 55% were male, and 45% are female.

As said in the report that 71% of those who avail storage facilities are at the age of 40-70 years old, 44% are made up of 50-65 years old and the remaining percentage of 9% are 25-35 years of age. The youngest age group are millennials, and that implies that this age group are less likely to use storages for they have fewer belongings, their use of the “sharing economy, and mobile nature. Also, the older age group has more ability to afford these self-storages.

The wealthier tier of society typically consumes Self-storages. Since they have more money to spare, the report is also inclined to the idea that the more affluent level of society has more excess belongings. But, since there are also issues of having small residential areas, these facilities are not restricted to those part of the lower socio-economic status.

To put it bluntly, anyone can use and avail storage facilities and the market is not only limited to any criteria. However, the storage industries are more inclined to market the leading majority.

 

Why do they avail storage units?

 

When people avail for storage units, most do so because of the lack of space in their residence, a specific life-changing event occurred or maybe because they want to avail. Some also own businesses and need a place to store their excess goods and products. Of course, having storage facilities is also having the freedom of owning your site to stock your belongings.

 

How do people know about the self-storage industry?

 

In general, they learn about the self-storage units due to the proximity of the establishment in their locale. In the report’s public survey, road visibility of the establishment is seen as the highest reason why people know about it. 

When people are asked what method they rather use to find information about self-storages, the majority of them chose to search for it on the internet. While knowing a local store nearby, suggestions by friends and family, social media, phone directory, and the local papers follow suit.

Although the UK houses the largest storage industry in Europe, there are still some people in the country who are not knowledgeable about these remarkable facilities and to put it on a substantial fraction, only 48% of the public are informed of this. And in a different classification, 56.9% of people cannot name a self-storage depot in his or her locale. Yet, it is understandable that not everyone needs these storage spaces, so some do not take any interest in knowing.

Many self-storage businesses are still guilty of their lack of mass media advertising. As the years pass by, there are relevant changes in the growth of the industry united with mass media presence. Still, it does not certainly increase the majority’s understanding of the product and the services they provide.

 

What typical space sizes and length of uses are utilised by people when renting self-storage facilities? 

 

For domestic customers, the majority of them rent storage spaces with 11 to 50 square feet, while the majority of business customers avail storages with 51 to 100 square feet of space. In terms of the intended length of use, both domestic and business customers plan to stay and use the storage space for more than two years.

 

What do people put in mind when looking for self-storage units?

 

Customers of this product prefer to avail storage units that are close to their residential area and ideally, they would rather travel 20 minutes or less to get to the establishment. They also take into account the features provided by the business such as an on-site attendant, secure monitoring in the storage areas, and accessibility during after hours.

 If given a chance, the most popular additional services that customers prefer were among the following: waste disposal on site, increased opening times, Wi-Fi, shelves inside the unit, more illumination, and heating. Usually, for people to find the storage facilities that they wish to avail, they go to sites such as Henfield Storage in London that provide a comprehensive guide towards the services, pricing and availability of their storage units.

 

How satisfied are the people with their use of self-storage units?

 

In both male and female customers, 68% of them perceive that their storage unit has good value, 20% of them do not know, while only 12% of them do not recognise that their storage unit is good value. In the satisfaction rate of the service, 93% are satisfied, 4% are indifferent, and the remaining 3% are dissatisfied.