What makes a person a “success”? For some, success is embodied by a Donald Trump or a Kardashian; for others it’s Mother Teresa or Mahatma Gandhi. But I submit that it’s a lot more than fortune and fame.

Warren Buffett, one of the wealthiest men on the planet, defines success not by his bank account but by “how many people love me.” Well, that’s certainly easy to say when your net worth is $88 billion, but it’s an interesting perspective for a man who’s decided to give his entire fortune to charity—most of it to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Personally, one of the most successful people I know never made more than $40,000 per year. He does, however, have a wife of more than 50 years and two amazing children. He brought up his kids on a factory-worker’s wage. One he put through dentist school and another has a master's degree in teaching. He accrued no debt and paid for his home in six years. He spends his retired days caring for his spouse, who has stage 4 cancer. To me, that’s accomplishment.

I don’t believe success should be measured by your bank account or how many “likes” or “friends” you have on social media. It’s achieving what you set out to do—being happy and living a life of love. Though each of us may have a different definition, let’s explore how success can be measured and applied to a career in self-storage or any other professional or personal aims you may have.

Set Objectives, Measure Results

The aims you wish to reach should align with your definition of success; but it’s difficult to know where you’re going if you don’t have a destination in mind. Setting goals is the best way to get where you want to be. State your objectives clearly so you know the plan. In fact, write them down.

Once you’ve set goals, you need a way to measure your progress. A good friend of mine, self-storage owner Adam Mikkelson, once told a group of fellow facility operators, “If it can't be measured, it can't be achieved.” It’s the credo by which he runs his business. He ensures he and his team have concrete, measurable, achievable goals.

For example, one of my desires is to be a scratch golfer. To get there, I’ve set a goal to shave two strokes off my handicap this year. I have a specific plan in place to do this, and I’ll consider it a “success” if I reduce my handicap by three or more strokes, which is better than my target.

Whatever method of assessment you choose, use it as a guide to tweak your plan. Any prolonged movement away from a goal should cause you to consider a course correction. Make sure any shift moves you toward your purpose, not farther from it.

One great tool to help you reach goals is accountability. Share your objectives, criteria and methods of assessment with someone who’s genuinely interested in your success. It’s equally important that you pay this forward, doing the same for someone in whom you have a vested interest.

Remove Obstacles

It isn’t always easy to reach your goals. There will be hindrances and interruptions along the way. The most important thing is to persevere. Don’t let excuses get in the way of accomplishments! With a plan for achievement, it’s easier to keep distractions at bay. Focus on the three Ps:

• Preparation is the best way to ensure success.
• Practice will help ease tasks along the journey.
• Prioritization will keep you organized.

Sometimes, your obstacles are people. Though it can be difficult, it’s important to eliminate or minimize the negative impact of those who inhibit your success. Remember the words of Booker T. Washington who said, “Associate yourself with people of good quality, for it is easier to be alone than in bad company.” Or maybe you prefer “It’s hard to soar with eagles when you fly with turkeys!”

To achieve success, you have to surround yourself with people who love and support you, not those who enable or control you. Seek out those who add value to your life and contribute to your ability to reach your goals.

Create Good Habits

Achieving goals requires good habits. As Aristotle said, “We are what we repeatedly do.” What we do regularly has much more of an impact than what we do occasionally. It’s easy to alter one immediate action, but far more difficult to change a habit. To create a good habit, take initial steps today and repeat them tomorrow! This is how you design your future.

That said, the common definition of insanity is “doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” Whatever actions you engage in, make sure they’re getting you closer to your goals! If not, it’s time to break that habit and put a better one in its place.

Take One Step at a Time

In working toward your goals, there are really only two approaches: make progress or make excuses. Success is comprised of short- and long-term objectives. It’s also dependent on intent and action.

Like rungs on a ladder, each step should get you closer to where you want to be. Keep your ultimate destination at the back of your mind, but keep your focus on your next concrete step. Otherwise, you can start to feel overwhelmed.

For example, let’s say you have a general goal to dramatically increase physical and economic occupancy at your self-storage facility. You can’t get there overnight. You need to break it down into clear, achievable steps:

• One-year goal: Achieve 92 percent occupancy, with 80 percent of rentals at the street rate.
• One-month goal: Increase facility occupancy from 82 percent to 83 percent; sell at least half of new rentals at the street rate.
• Today’s goal: Convert more than 75 percent of calls and Web to in-store visits; rent more than 66 percent at the street rate.

Try New Things

Achieving success is also about doing new things. For example, maybe you don’t normally call last week’s leads to see if those prospects are still looking to rent a self-storage unit. Set a goal to call at least five of them by noon tomorrow. Perhaps you don’t usually promote your self-storage business when you’re out running errands. Set a goal that the next time you go to the bank or post office, or out to purchase supplies, that you’ll hand the clerk a business card, compliment him on the job he’s doing and ask for a referral.

A Simple Yet Effective Approach

To achieve success, professionally or personally, as part of the self-storage industry or some other pursuit, follow this straightforward plan:

• Set concrete, measurable, achievable goals. Write them down and share them with others to create accountability.
• Choose a method of assessment and regularly measure your progress. If you find yourself moving away from your goals, correct your course to get back on track.
• Remove obstacles, even if they’re people. Surround yourself with positive influences who will help you meet or exceed your aims.
• Take positive steps toward your goals and repeat them until you’ve created good habits.
• Always keep your end goal in mind, but focus immediately on the next step in the process.
• Try new things to improve your results.

No matter how you define success, this simple approach will help you achieve it!

RK Kliebenstein is principal of Coast-to-Coast Realty Advisors LLC. He has more than 30 years of self-storage industry experience, from creating business strategies to disposing of mature assets and everything in between. He’s the author of several books, including publications on how to invest and make money in self-storage. He’s also a frequent speaker at industry events, For more information, call 561.797.2721; e-mail [email protected]; visit https://askrk.com.

During the last recession, from 2008 to 2010, nearly 1.4 million small businesses shuttered their doors, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration. In the real estate sector, self-storage fared quite well thanks to the recession-resistant nature of the industry. In fact, while the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts “All Equity Index” lost almost 40 percent across all sectors in 2008, self-storage REITs returned 5 percent including dividends.

Keep in mind, though, that while self-storage may be one of the “safer” sectors during an economic downturn, survival isn’t guaranteed. Many good owners, operators, developers and other professionals have exited the business during declines, and not by choice. For those fortunate to remain in the game, there are valuable lessons to be learned to help prepare for the next recession, which is long overdue.

Trying to forecast when the downturn will begin is difficult. There’s no limit to the theories, statistics and predictions. For example, a June 2019 survey from the National Association for Business Economics put the risks of a recession beginning before the end of 2020 at 60 percent. In a recent Fortune 500 poll, most CEOs indicated they expect a recession to begin by the end of 2019 or sometime next year, with another third bracing for one in 2021.

In any case, a recessions is coming. It’s an inevitable correction. To gather prevailing thoughts, I reached out to a few esteemed colleagues who have ridden through the ups and downs of the last two economic cycles, asking them about lessons learned and how to prepare for the next downturn. Here’s what they had to say.

Tron Jordheim, Managing Partner, Self Storage Strategies
Focus: Operation

The last recession was driven by the sub-prime mortgage crisis, which caused the residential real estate bubble to burst and consumer debt to cross the tipping point. The next downcycle could also be driven by a real estate and apartment-rental pricing bubble. Consumer debt is again at a tipping point, but the recession could also be triggered by student-debt buildup, chaotic effects from international tariff policies, or energy-price increases from disruptions in oil and gas producing parts of the world. Combine all that with the increased use of automation in our economy, which could lead to more people being ushered from their jobs than the economy can handle.

With or without a recession, the oversupply of self-storage in some markets may disrupt rental rates for up to 10 years. Consider, too, that the rise of insurance-related payouts has stressed the reserves of insurance companies whose investments drive much of the economy.

Strategy. Don’t race to the bottom. Maintain your current rental rates, and continue to institute rent increases. If you need to make concessions to get rentals, use promotions like “first month free” or “free use of moving truck with move-in.” Spend more time than ever on curb appeal and site cleanliness, including bathrooms. Engage in more local guerrilla marketing.

Safeguards. In preparation for the next recession, here are some items self-storage operators should put into place now:

• Finance any capital expenditures that need it while rates are low, but be very careful how much debt you carry.
• Perform a stress test on your financial situation to see how much of a drop in revenue you can weather.
• Pay down loans that have loan-to-value (LTV) covenants, especially if your stress test makes you concerned that you won’t meet the thresholds of today’s debt picture.
• Scrutinize expenses to see what can be jettisoned if necessary.
• Get collections of any delinquent rent in order. An automated collections system can help. Stay on top of this!
• Sell your site if you believe you may want or need to unload it within the next few years. Or, if you have several properties, sell off the dogs and hold some cash to protect the gems.
• Get your basic marketing game in order. If your market takes a hit, the best marketers will come out of the recession in the best shape.

Pro tip. Again, don’t drop rates to get new renters! It takes a very long time to recover rate power. Some operators who dropped rates in 2008 and 2009 didn’t recover them until 2015 and as late as 2017. This time, we need to add in an oversupply facet, which is why it could take 10 years to recover. It’s better to lose money for a while and be able to recover rates quickly than to cut rates and then struggle. Cutting rates also kills your pro formas if you want to sell.

Terry Campbell, General Manager, Live Oak Bank
Focus: Financing

Something to consider is the fact that self-storage usually does relatively well during a downturn. As we look at history, it isn’t recession-proof, but it is recession-resistant. Even during the Great Recession, occupancies (national average) dropped to just under 76 percent, and delinquencies were very low.

Loan covenants. Owners should review their loans to see what type of financial covenants they may have. I’ve spoken with several who had covenants tied to their LTV. Many had property values drop, which put them in violation of those covenants. Even though they were making payments and business was fine, they were at risk of foreclosure. One gentleman I spoke with had to come up with $1 million to get his LTV back in line so he wouldn’t lose his facility. If you have this type of covenant, which isn’t uncommon, be prepared in case something similar happens.

Refinancing. If you have good cash-flowing properties and plan to hold them long term, consider putting your debt into a long-term, fixed-rate loan. If the loan comes due during a recession, it could be harder to refinance in a high-rate, low-LTV environment. If you find yourself in this fix, you may need to go the route of SBA financing with a guarantee to get the refinance.

Pro tip. Facility operators should consider going unmanned or using virtual management. If you have employees, this could help lower operating expenses; but of course, each facility, location and situation is different. I also suggest operators put as many tenants as possible on autopay to prevent delinquencies.

Aric Platt, Vice President, DDC Threecore
Focus: Development and Construction

In self-storage construction, the first step in preparing for a potential economic slowdown is to focus on the market. Understanding the market and its fundamentals will help you assess the potential impact and time required to recover.

The second step is to review your proposed facility location. The best sites are able to maintain customer traffic to drive project fundamentals (rental rates, occupancy, etc.).

The next step is to secure a firm for the design and construction of the site to ensure your team is able to manage any risks associated with recession. These include the financial stability of the general contractor (GC), subcontractors and suppliers. Though you may not bond the project, it’s important to make sure your prime GC is bondable. This is a measure of the financial stability of the company and increases the likelihood of a successfully completed project. Also, ensure your GC is collecting appropriate documentation from subcontractors and suppliers, such as partial and full-lien releases.

Pro tip. During the last recession, some owners were surprised to learn that though they paid the GC, the subcontractors weren’t paid, which led to liens against on the property. This delayed projects with costly legal issues. So, look at the experience and history of the firm you hire. How did it navigate the last recession? Was it able to complete projects on time without major issues? When facing a recession, it’s best to focus on project fundamentals to ensure success.

My Turn

I’m in full agreement with everything stated above. Note that several statements echoed the same sentiments, though no one had prior knowledge of what the others had said.

My company has been preparing for the next recession for the last seven years. This includes keeping our loans to a minimum, carrying lower LTVs and being mindful of when rates may adjust. Since 2012, each project we’ve commenced has had a clear exit strategy or refinance date that coincides with projections for the next correction as well as the approximate interest-rate and capitalization-rate environment in which we may find ourselves. We’ve also been amassing a war chest of cash and have significantly increased our private-equity network to actively participate in the types of opportunities that are created during a downturn.

There are many newcomers to self-storage since the last recession. They’ve enjoyed the huge wind in our sail from one of the strongest bull markets in our nation’s history, along with the market gifts that have been given along the way. Don’t take the likelihood of a coming recession lightly. Be prepared. Turn each of these lessons and suggestions into action items for your business to stay the course in the months to come.

To quote Mike Tyson, “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face!” In life and in business, it’s all about Plan B. If you don’t have a plan, the market will create one for you.

Scott Meyers is the president and owner of Indianapolis-based Kingdom Storage Holdings LLC. He’s acquired, developed and managed 32 facilities comprising more than 7,000 units nationwide since 1993. His education platform, www.selfstorageinvesting.com, offers information, software and seminars to help individuals launch and grow a self-storage business. To reach him, e-mail [email protected].

Employees of Green Storage, which operates eight self-storage locations in Ontario, participated on Feb. 22 in “Coldest Night of the Year” (CNOY), a walk-a-thon that raises money for local charities serving the homeless and needy in 144 Canadian communities. This year’s event netted nearly $5.8 million toward its national goal of $6 million.

The three-member Green Storage team collected $1,907 in cash donations as well as four large bags of clothing, toiletries and footwear for its beneficiary, Inn From The Cold, which provides temporary emergency shelter, housing and support as well as homeless-prevention programs. The funds will be used to pay for meals, employment-training programs, clothing and other essentials, according to Ed Crawford, site manager of Green Storage Newmarket.

“First of all, I would like to thank my fellow walkers, Amanda and Sonia, as well as the management team, including our owner partners at Green Storage, for supporting us in the ‘Coldest Night of the Year,’” Crawford said. “What you did means a lot to the people in our community who need support, help and encouragement that this money will provide. It's a big deal for the people we're supporting!”

The Green Storage team also enjoyed promoting the event to its tenants. “The customers felt good donating either funds or items—some brand new—that could be sent through to the shelter,” Crawford said.

CNOY participants walked two, five or 10 kilometers on a looping 5-kilometer route, beginning at dusk. Participants registered online and set up their own fundraising pages. Registration was free for children age 10 and younger. Kids age 11 to 17 and adults were required to raise $75 and $150, respectively, or pay a $25 fee.

“We were stoked to do the walk wearing funny glasses and leys, pins, hats, and making noise with our noisemakers when we weren't singing or chatting,” Crawford said. “The walk was followed up with a bowl of hot chili, cornbread, veggie sticks, deviled eggs, and hot chocolate or coffee.”

This year’s event included 23,610 walkers in 3,570 teams, 5,876 volunteers and 78,562 donors. The next walk will take place on Feb. 20.

Green Storage operates facilities in Ajax, Aurora, Bolton, Hamilton, Keswick, Newmarket, Orillia and Toronto. Its sustainable features include e-waste disposal, electric vehicle-charging stations, LED lighting, low-flush toilets and solar panels. The facilities also offer boardrooms and business suites, mailboxes, moving and packing supplies, parcel lockers, truck rentals, and vehicle-storage parking.

Sources:
Coldest Night of the Year, Website
Green Storage, Website

StayLock Storage, which operates more than 60 self-storage facilities in six states, is increasing its efforts to be eco-responsible by installing LED lighting at 19 of its locations across four states. The new lights will be designed to increase brightness and uniformity while increasing safety and efficiency, according to a press release from EnergyWare LLC, the company hired to do the work.

“StayLock executives had noted that many of its storage facilities were underlit, creating both an inconvenience and a potential security risk for staff, customers and goods stored at their locations,” the release stated. StayLock approached EnergyWare after receiving a recommendation from another self-storage operator.

Headquartered in Sunrise, Fla., EnergyWare provides LED design, engineering, manufacturing and installation. The company specializes in smart technology with application to the Internet of Things. It has installations in more than 30 states, according to its website, with 10 regional offices nationwide.

StayLock owns self-storage locations in Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, South Carolina and West Virginia. It’s portfolio comprises more than 2.4 million net rentable square feet.

StorageMart, which operates more than 200 self-storage properties across Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States, was featured this week on an episode of “Returning the Favor,” an online reality series hosted by Mike Rowe that highlights people making a difference in their communities. The March 2 show focused on firefighter Drew Gerken, founder of The Furniture Project, an Omaha, Neb., charity that delivers furniture and household items to people in need. Gerken is part of StorageMart’s “Store It Forward” initiative, through which the operator provides service help, sponsorships, and discounted and donated storage space, according to a press release.

StorageMart began supporting Gerken’s efforts shortly after he launched his charity in 2013. He’s used two side-by-side units at the operator’s Scott Circle location in Omaha to store items donated to him or that he collects on his own, the release stated. “The ability to acquire all of these things has to be accompanied by storage,” Gerken said. “The storage is almost a coequal component for this project.”

At the end of each “Returning the Favor” episode, the feature subject receives a gift from the show to assist in his charitable work. In his installment, Gerken walked into what he thought was a surprise birthday party for a friend, only to be greeted by hundreds of friends, family and colleagues celebrating his accomplishments. He was presented with a new moving truck to transport donated items, along with bunk beds from Sleep in Heavenly Peace, another StorageMart charitable partner, which makes beds for children.

Gerken also received use of a third storage unit at the Scott Circle property, with the cost covered for four years by StorageMart and “Returning the Favor.” “It was totally surreal,” Gerken said. “What choked me up the most was thinking about all the people we help and that we're going to be able to help even more of them.”

Sarah Yourgrau, co-executive producer of the show, said she hopes the episode will inspire others to get involved in their communities, realizing they can make a sizable, positive impact without the charitable work taking over their lives.

“I don't think I've cried tears of joy that much since my wedding day,” said Kevin Lanning, a StorageMart regional manager who was formerly the site manager at the Scott Circle facility. “I lost my voice for two whole days because of all the yelling and cheering for Drew and his organization.”

“Returning the Favor” is a Facebook Watch Original and can be viewed from its Facebook page.

Founded in 1999 and based in Columbia, Mo., StorageMart is privately owned and operated by the Burnam Family, which has been in the storage industry for three generations. Its portfolio consists of more than 16 million square feet of storage. It serves more than 75,000 self-storage customers, and operates in Chinese, English, Punjabi, Quebecois French and Spanish.

Source:
Webster County Citizen, StorageMart Appears on Episode of ‘Returning the Favor’ With Mike Rowe

At the end of 2019, many self-storage operators cited industry oversupply as a major concern. Consumer demand was better than expected at the beginning of the year, but going forward, it’ll be progressively difficult to stand out in saturated markets—physically and online.

With increased competition come increased marketing costs. According to the 2018 Form 10-K filings of four self-storage real estate investment trusts, marketing and advertising costs increased 16 percent over the previous year. Google reported a similar increase of 14 percent in cost-per-click transactions during the same time period.

To combat these types of increases, sophisticated self-storage marketers are leveraging smart digital-advertising systems that use advanced technologies like automation, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to create efficiency and expand reach to qualified prospects. For example, automation of digital ads helps avoid mistakes caused by human error. Prequalifying the right people with the right ad at the right time saves money and decreases ad spending.

Using technological advancements and optimizing your marketing plan with a streamlined, accessible website will be essential in differentiating your business and decreasing advertising costs. Let’s take a closer look at three tools that will help you stand out in your market, minimize expense and maximize return on investment.

Attribution Models

On average, self-storage shoppers consult 10.7 digital touchpoints before making a purchase decision. To effectively attract new customers, you must learn the buyer’s journey. Mapping this journey and correctly identifying sources of attribution requires the assistance of advanced marketing technologies.

What is an attribution model? According to Google, it’s “the rule, or set of rules, that determines how much credit for sales and conversions is assigned to touchpoints in conversion paths.” There are several models to consider:

• First interaction: This gives credit to the first touchpoint in the buyer’s journey.
• Last interaction: Often referred to as last-click or last-touch attribution, this model assigns full credit for a conversion to the final touchpoint in the buyer’s journey.
• Linear: This model evenly distributes credit to each touchpoint engaged by a customer before converting.
• Time decay: This credits each touchpoint in the customer journey, though not equally. Instead, it gives more weight to the interaction that occurred closest to conversion.

Establish an attribution model that works best for your self-storage company and focus your efforts on the channels that most effectively generate new leases. Marketing technologies that employ automation, AI and machine learning are helpful here.

Chatbots

Regardless of what they’re searching for, consumers want instant gratification and assistance throughout the buying process. They also prefer using chat over speaking with a human—four times more, in fact—according to research from business-management firm PSFK Labs. Chatbots can augment your sales team with automated, around-the-clock customer service that drives conversions from your website.

Web Accessibility

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) is the most widely accepted standard for website accessibility. It addresses development and design best practices needed to allow all users, regardless of disability, to understand and navigate a website. Self-storage operators who are early adopters will stand out from competitors and demonstrate they care about the customer experience. Adhering to WCAG may also help mitigate legal risk, as more website-accessibility lawsuits are being filed.

Digital-marketing tools that employ technological advancements offer you ways to stand out in a saturated market, attribute your marketing and better control your ad spend. As self-storage competition tightens, an optimized marketing strategy that uses automation, AI and machine learning will be imperative to understanding which campaigns work best and decreasing your overall costs.

Celena Canode is a marketing-campaign manager at G5, a provider of digital marketing solutions to the self-storage industry. It’s a predictive marketing software-as-a-service company that uses artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies to help marketers amplify their impact. Through its Intelligent Marketing Cloud, G5 delivers performance and scalability through predictive analytics, hyper-personalized customer experiences and continuous spend optimization. For more information, call 800.554.1965; visit www.getg5.com.

Anthony McHenry is managing director at Storage Professionals, a Johannesburg, South Africa-based property-management firm that oversees the Storage Worx self-storage portfolio. Storageworx was founded in 2009 under the Storage Genie name and today operates 14 locations in the Gauteng province. In this interview, he offers insight to the local storage industry.

What is the self-storage market like in South Africa?

The industry has just started to establish itself here. We have one dedicated real estate investment trust that has 35 sites. Several other listed companies and property-management companies have started to purchase assets in this class to list them on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

What challenges does the local industry face?

Our greatest challenges are financing and staffing. Since it is such a young industry, we don’t have professional managers, and the finance houses don’t see the full potential, which is an advantage if your asset portfolio needs to diversify its income a bit.

What’s happening on the development side?

Our industry is still finding the various niches in the market. Mostly, it is understood to be traditional-style storage, but we all know that it will divide into four main categories: multi-level facilities, traditional, convenience (locations in shopping malls and offices) and valet. I also see a division branching into affordable office space for small business and people who operate in different locations from their units.

What’s the lending landscape like?

This aspect is very sad, as the banks will only give 60 percent to 70 percent loans for these businesses. Property investors are looting the industry because they will only pay for the income and expect the asset for free.

Who are your customers and what are they looking for when they seek storage?

They vary from clients who need a storage unit while they transition from one home or job to another short term, businesses that are growing faster than their resources, individuals who just need some extra space, and lifestyle customers who need a place to store items related to their hobbies and sports.

What’s on the horizon?

I am optimistic regarding the future of self-storage, as the market is still growing. As more and more high-density developments go up and multi-use buildings come in and around the cities, the need for self-storage will grow with it.

For more information, visit www.storageworx.co.za.

Three people were arrested last week in connection with a series of burglaries at Lucenda Self Storage in Plattsburgh, N.Y. The thefts at 290 Margaret St. occurred between Feb. 18 and 27, according to Plattsburgh City Police Chief Levi Ritter. A facility employee notified authorities on Feb. 25 after noticing locks had been cut from several units.

Allen Duval, 29, Rachel Duval, 27, and David Garrant, 28, have been charged with seven felony counts of third-degree burglary and two felony counts of fourth-degree grand larceny. They’re also facing five counts of petit larceny, a misdemeanor, according to the source. Allen Duval has also been charged with fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon, another misdemeanor. More charges could be coming as the investigation continues, Ritter said.

All three were arraigned at Plattsburgh City Court on Friday. Allen Duval and Garrant were remanded to Clinton County Jail while Rachel Duval was released on her own recognizance. Her next court appearance is April 2. Court dates for Garrant and Allen Duval are March 20 and March 26, respectively.

Lucenda Self Storage offers climate-controlled and drive-up units, 24-hour access, moving and packing supplies, and U-Haul truck rentals. It’s managed by Plattsburgh Self-Storage Group, which also operates Easy Self Storage at 788 NY-3 and a retail rental space at 24 Margaret St., both in Plattsburgh. The group plans to open another facility in the city on Sharon Avenue to accommodate vehicle storage.

Source:
Press-Republican, Plattsburgh Trio Arrested in Connection With Storage Unit Burglaries
Lucenda Self Storage, Facebook