Elmwood Self Storage & Wine Cellar of Harahan, LA, Adds Community Value Through a Diverse Range of Ancillary OfferingsElmwood Self Storage & Wine Cellar of Harahan, LA, Adds Community Value Through a Diverse Range of Ancillary Offerings

Twenty years ago, an old furniture store in Harahan, Louisiana, was transformed and given new life as a provider of unique storage solutions. Today, Elmwood Self Storage & Wine Cellar offers a diverse range of offerings including boat/RV storage, gun storage, mailbox rentals, package acceptance, records storage, safe-deposit box rentals, valet storage and wine storage. Together, these profit centers capture and retain tenants in an increasingly saturated market.

The 144,000-square-foot facility comprises more than 1,600 units. Of those, 1,154 are traditional self-storage, while the rest provide “specialty” storage, including 70 units in the wine cellar. Following is the story of the facility’s origin and how it evolved to provide value to its customers and the community.

Learning the Needs of the Market

What’s now Elmwood Self Storage was originally a vacant furniture store owned by Lauricella Land Co. Lauricella tapped Al Gardes, who was a project manager for the company, to find a purpose for the building in the early 2000s. Gardes happened to have a golfing buddy who owned a self-storage facility, which led him to research the industry. While attending a conference and tradeshow, he met long-time self-storage consulting expert Anne Ballard. The two decided to conduct a feasibility study to see if storage would be a good fit and determine what services to offer based on the needs of the surrounding market. This was how they discovered a demand for wine storage.

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“We are the only public wine cellar in our area,” says Lenorah Durel, operations manager for Elmwood. “We are located close to New Orleans. Our director is a member of wine clubs and even participates in a walking Mardi Gras parade with one.”

Years later, the company added boat/RV storage as well as mailbox rentals “because a need was seen,” Durel explains.

The company also accepts packages for tenants and delivers them directly to their units, a service that appeals strongly to its commercial clientele. According to Durel, 20% of their renters fall under this category. These customers also have access to the site’s free conference room and Wi-Fi. Plus, those who are willing to pay an extra fee can opt for a unit with a light and power outlet, which enables them to complete additional business-related tasks. For example, one tenant creates and prints shipping labels from his unit.

“So, if a small business can get their mail, which gives them an address in Elmwood, have their deliveries put in their unit by the carrier while they are out getting more business, then come back to the storage for meetings in our free conference room, it’s worth it to them,” Durel says.

In addition, the company established Elmwood Records Center and Elmwood Valet Storage, separate LLCs that operate alongside the self-storage business. The records center also offers shredding. The valet storage is a “concierge storage service” that picks up and delivers single items. According to Durel, it’s great for college students.

A Focus on Customer Retention

Since the facility opened two decades ago, the self-storage market in the region has changed considerably. There’s been an influx of new facilities in recent years, amounting to at least 20 competitors in a 10-mile radius, Durel says.

Despite increasing competition, Elmwood doesn’t operate like the industry’s big players. “We monitor the other companies’ rates and are higher than all of them. We have specials online and prepay specials, but we don’t raise rates shortly after people move in.”

The facility has an overall occupancy of about 60%; however, this is a “skewed number” because the business offers many types of storage, Durel says. She also notes tenants are loyal to the brand. The average length of stay is more than five years—about three times longer than the typical self-storage tenant. “We’re not the cheapest, but we have a lot of value that the community sees and that’s why they come to us.”

Spreading the Word

As with any self-storage facility, a key to Elmwood’s success is marketing. The company uses Google AdWords, social media and “good, old-fashion word of mouth,” Durel says. It also hosts about a dozen community events each year, from onsite yard sales to a large bingo game in partnership with Kiwanis International that raises money for a children’s charity.

“We have many people who attend an event but did not know that we offer one of the ancillary services,” Durel says. “We find [that] once people know what we offer, they come to store if they have the need."

Employees are trained to upsell the business’ varied products and services, which can lead to fresh clientele. In addition, they connect with local wine-shop owners to market the site’s wine storage.

Seek to Grow

Offering any kind of ancillary product or service at a self-storage facility requires careful consideration of the market and the costs involved. For instance, RV storage can be launched relatively quickly if you have the demand and the space, but a wine cellar requires special development and security to be profitable, Durel points out. Elmwood’s wine cellar has a dual mechanical system, a backup generator and onsite staff during business hours to ensure it operates professionally.

To fellow facility operators who might like to follow in Elmwood’s footsteps, Durel suggest you do your research. Know your area and get a feasibility study (maybe two).

While not every profit center will be right for your market, “Never stop looking to grow. Everything may not be a gold mine, but you don’t know what it could bring,” Durel says.

Rachel French is a freelance content writer and copywriter. Her background is in business-to-business media and copywriting for web applications. She’s covered a range of industries and markets including self-storage as well as financial, food and beverage, healthcare, and nutraceuticals. She previously worked for Inside Self-Storage as an intern turned associate editor.