UK Self-Storage Operator LoknStore to Open New Facility in Gillingham, Kent, England

U.K. self-storage operator Lok'nStore Group PLC has purchased a property in Gillingham, Kent, England, on which it plans to build a new facility. The company will submit a planning application to city officials soon, according to the source. If approved, the facility would open in late 2017.

The 1-acre site is in the Gillingham Business Park, a self-contained, mixed-use property near London, the Channel Tunnel and the southeast coast ports of Dover and Folkestone. It comprises about 100 acres and more than 1.5 million square feet of industrial, leisure, office and retail space.

The acquisition is part of a £10 million investment that also includes a development site in Northamptonshire, England, the source reported.

“These two excellent new locations show clear progress in delivering our strategy of developing landmark stores,” said CEO Andrew Jacobs. “Trading at our recently opened stores has been encouraging, and our strong balance sheet and flexible new banking facility give us the confidence that Lok’nStore can continue to deliver growing dividends for its investors from an increasing number of stores.”

Lok'nStore recently reported a “continued strong performance” based on preliminary figures for the first half of its 2016 fiscal year, which ended Jan. 31. The company reported a 5.4 percent increase in same-store self-storage revenue from the first half of 2015.

Founded in 1995, Lok’nStore builds, buys or leases large warehouses or industrial buildings and rents storage units to customers on a weekly basis. It operates 26 self-storage facilities and two records-storage locations in Southern England. The self-storage portfolio is comprised of 12 freehold or long-leasehold properties, eight leasehold sites and four locations under management. It owns 20 of its operating facilities.