The newly formed Japan Self Storage Association (JSSA) has entered an affiliation agreement with the national U.S. Self Storage Association (SSA), allowing the organizations to share benefits. JSSA Managing Director Tatsuya Saji and SSA President and CEO Michael Scanlon Jr. signed the documents last month during Saji’s visit to the SSA headquarters in Alexandria, Va.
 
The affiliation will provide JSSA members with access to SSA magazines and newsletters, which will be translated to Japanese by the JSSA. In addition, representatives of each organization will participate in the conferences and meetings held by the other.
 
The self-storage industry is still very small in Japan, according to Saji, who said there is only about 100,000 units total in the country. But the industry is growing, and Saji said it is important to consider the lessons learned in the United States.
 
Last year, Saji contributed an article to Inside Self-Storage magazine titled, “Self-Storage in Japan: Opportunities Exist in a Country Thirsty for Space,” an overview of the industry in Japan. The article indicated that Japanese residents long for additional space and privacy, a desire the burgeoning self-storage industry can fulfill.
 
In January, more than 60 Japanese self-storage professionals attended the JSSA’s first meeting in Tokyo.
 
Source: Self-Storage Association, Monday Morning Memo, April 5, 2010

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