Self-Storage Operators Motivated to Wheel and Deal With Customers

With consumers suffering from layoffs and foreclosures, self-storage operators in St. Louis and nationwide are doing whatever they can to keep units full and paid, including being flexible and making concessions, according to an article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Even the recession-resistant self-storage industry is feeling the pinch of the tightened economy, and operators realize negotiations are sometimes necessary. Some are offering price breaks and promotions, and being more forgiving when it comes to delinquent customers.
 
Randy Weissman, a 20-year industry veteran and president of Storage Banc, which operates eight self-storage sites in the St. Louis metro area, said this is as difficult a time as he’s ever seen for self-storage.
 
Storage Inn Inc., with 10 facilities in Missouri, is making lots of with customers, according to Howard Price, executive vice president. Public Storage, the nation's largest self-storage company, is advertising significant price breaks.
 
Part of the reason self-storage companies are eager to work with customers is because the process of auctioning tenants’ goods is tedious and full of risk, sometimes for minimal payoff. Lien sales are down at Storage Banc and Storage Inn, thanks to the companies’ efforts. Wanting to avoid bad press when selling customer goods is another motivating factor, Weissman said.
 
Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Self-storage industry pulls out the stops to staunch delinquencies, draw new customers

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