Self-Storage Investment Firm Spartan Hires 2 Leadership Executives

Spartan Investment Group, a privately held real estate investment firm that specializes in self-storage and operates the FreeUp Storage brand, added two people to its executive team. Matthias Kellmer joined the company as president, while Kevin Holst was hired as chief legal officer.

Kellmer will lead the operations team to develop new company infrastructure, scale the portfolio and identify deals. His focus will also be on acquiring and transitioning new facilities as well as marketing, staff training and revenue management.

Kellmer has more than 20 years of experience in commercial real estate, with a concentration on value-add assets. He most recently served as vice president of asset management for self-storage real estate investment trust Extra Space Storage Inc., where he oversaw asset strategy for a portfolio of 1,300 properties.

“Matthias will serve Spartan well as we look to grow our FreeUp Storage brand operations across the U.S.,” said Ryan Gibson, co-founder and chief investment officer. “During such a volatile economic investment landscape, Kevin’s appointment serves to let investors know we are doing everything we can to protect their investments and mitigate risk.”

Holst will handle all legal, governmental and risk matters. He has experience in real estate, lodging, construction, multi-family development, property management, joint ventures, private equity, mergers and acquisitions, and zoning and land use.

“As Spartan continues to strategically grow as a self-storage investment, construction and management company, so too does our leadership team with the additions of Matthias and Kevin,” Gibson said. “We are thrilled to welcome both executives, who come highly qualified, to support Spartan’s operations, acquisitions and risk-management goals in the years ahead.”

Founded in 2014 and based in Golden, Colorado, Spartan operates more 65 facilities nationwide.