Update 8/31/16 – Corovan Moving and Storage has expanded its Brute Storage service to San Jose, Calif. The valet-storage operator now lists 54 Bay Area communities on its website, stretching north to south from San Pablo to Los Gatos. The service area primarily includes municipalities with access from Interstates 280 and 880. Cities in the San Jose vicinity also receiving service include Santa Clara and Palo Alto, including the Stanford University campus.

7/20/16 – Corovan Moving and Storage, a San Francisco-based company offering commercial and residential moving services as well as warehouse storage, has launched Brute Storage as a valet-storage division serving Berkeley, Oakland and San Francisco, Calif. The offering provides an online platform through which customers can schedule an initial delivery of storage bins, item pickup for storage, and then return delivery of bins to their location when needed, according to a press release.

Pricing is $7 per bin per month. Oversized items, such as bikes, luggage and skis, are $12.50 per item per month. Large items must weigh less than 40 pounds and be movable by a single person, according to the Brute website. The minimum length of stay is one month.

Items are stored at a secure warehouse in San Leandro, Calif. Customers can schedule the return of their items online. The return fee is $20, with deliveries completed the day after they’re scheduled, the release stated.

“We want to make self-storage more convenient and cost less for everyone. More than 11 million households in the U.S. have a storage unit today, spending an average of $150 per month,” said Adam Horsman, head of the Brute division. “We deliver on-demand storage boxes to your home or office, pick them up and add them to your online account. Because you pay only for the storage you actually need, our customers can save hundreds vs. a traditional self-storage unit, and you never have to visit a storage unit again.”

Customer account-management features include the ability to add personalized photos and custom descriptions of stored items, according to the Brute website.

Brute is handling the San Francisco customer base that formerly belonged to Boxbee Inc., according to the Boxbee website. That company sold its operation in May to concentrate on selling its software platform to other vendors. Brute will face competition in the area from Clutter.

Corovan Moving and Storage was founded in 1948. It launched sister company Brute Box Moving in 2014 to offer delivery of reusable moving bins to help simplify the moving process, the release stated.

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