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The Four Key Elements to a Successful Wine-Storage Operation: Construction, Temp Control, Security and Marketing

Article-The Four Key Elements to a Successful Wine-Storage Operation: Construction, Temp Control, Security and Marketing

As competition in the self-storage industry increased over the last decade, operators looked for new ways to bring in more revenue and expand their market share. They began experimenting with complementary products and services including boat and RV storage, records storage, business services such as faxing and mailboxes, mobile storage, truck rental and, most recently, cell-tower leasing.

For some markets, wine storage has emerged as the most profitable ancillary service. The per-square-foot return can easily exceed that of traditional climate-controlled storage, plus wine storage remains a niche service in the majority of self-storage markets. Also, because wine has such an upscale image, offering this highly specialized service can elevate a facility's reputation.

Whether youre building wine storage from the ground up or adding it to your existing self-storage operation, there are four main components to making it successful: construction, temperature control, security and marketing.  

Build Well

Most operators who opt to include wine storage at their facility will dedicate an entire area to the operation, including a private door and security, wine décor, and a dedicated HVAC system. Because wine must be stored under certain conditions, the construction of the room and lockers is paramount.

The primary goal should be to create an environment in which a temperature of 55 degrees and a humidity level of 70 percent can be consistently maintained. There are several construction methods that will help maintain this critical element. First, the concrete floor should be sealed with a water-based sealant, and vapor barriers should also be installed on the ceiling and walls. The insulation rating should be R22 in the walls and R30 in the ceiling. When choosing drywall, opt for green board, which better resists moisture. Cover the green board with a hard-coat finish by troweling drywall mud over the entire surface. The walls can then be painted for the final finish.

The next consideration is the size, style and material of the lockers. Lockers can be constructed from a variety of materials, including simple plywood boxes, cages of wooden slats, elaborate oak or redwood lockers with louvered doors, or any combination. Some permeable surface, such as that provided by slats or louvers, is preferred to assure proper circulation within the lockers.

Lockers sizes should vary to meet your market demand. Consider adding some smaller lockers for the individual wine collector, as well as larger ones for retail and restaurant tenants.

Control Temperature

Controlling the temperature inside your wine storage is by far the most critical component of the operation. The ideal temperature for wine storage is between 55 and 58 degrees. Lower temperatures will slow aging, and higher temperatures affect the wines quality. The humidity should be between 60 and 70 percent. Excessively high humidity breeds molds and damages labels. Low humidity causes corks to dry out, resulting in the wine inevitably spoiling. Ultraviolet light can also damage wine, even if exposed for a brief period, so keep your wine storage dark when not being used by customers.

Most operators opt to use two refrigeration units dedicated specifically to the wine storage. This creates a redundant system that will maintain the required conditions for the wine in case one unit fails. In addition, installing a back-up generator to operate in the event of a power failure will further protect wine against any damage. The temperature and humidity controls for the cooling units should also be tied to an alarm system so someone is promptly notified if a problem occurs.

Install Solid Security

Next to temperature and humidity control, the security of your wine storage is the most critical element. Wine enthusiasts, collectors, restaurateurs and wineries invest a great deal of money in their inventory, notes John Fogg of Sentinel Systems Corp. The most important security measure you can take is restricting access to the wine-storage area to only tenants storing wine.

Install a separate electronic keypad at the entry to the wine room so just those with the code can open it. Surveillance cameras should be placed in the wine storage and integrated into the monitoring system of the facility grounds. This way the manager can keep tabs on whats going on in the wine-storage area.

Fogg also encourages operators to install individual alarms on each wine-storage locker, as well as a commercial-grade fire and sprinkler system. It doesnt make sense to store a sophisticated, valuable collection if its susceptible to loss or damage due to theft, fire or equipment failure, he says. The discerning renter will seek out the safest, most secure site to store this precious commodity.

Market in Your Community

Americans love their wine, drinking an estimated 767 million gallons of wine in 2009, according to the Wine Institute. And many wine connoisseurs, retailers and restaurateurs, turn to self-storage for the safekeeping of their stock.

Marketing wine storage requires a more active approach than that of traditional self-storage. You cannot simply lean on your facilitys street location and curb appeal to attract these tenants. Youll need a more targeted campaign to achieve the best results.

March Chase, vice president of Southeast Management Co., which operates Plantation Storage in South Carolina, suggests you first market to your existing tenants, as they are already familiar with your facility. Depending on the location of your wine storage, many of your customers may not even know you offer this service. Send an e-mail to your current and previous tenants outlining the features of your wine-storage facility and offer them a discount on their first months rent.

You should also reach out to local wine-tasting clubs, and restaurants and retailers who specialize in wine. Create a referral program through your partnerships, offering group discounts or two-for-one deals.

Take your operation to the next level by offering wine-tasting events. Ask a local wine expert from a restaurant, retailer or club to come in and talk about wine. Youll bring your audience of wine lovers to your facility, where theyll see firsthand how your wine storage can protect their collections. Be sure to market the event through fliers, on your website and through social-media outlets such as Twitter and Facebook.

If you have a retail store, consider adding wine-related products such as corkscrews, coolers, wine tags, glasses, cases, carriers, books and wine magazines. Your facility will become a one-stop shop, allowing tenants to pick up extra items when scrambling with last-minute party preparations. Theyll appreciate the convenience, and youll earn more revenue.

By focusing on the four core components of wine storageconstruction, temperature control, security and marketingyoull attract more tenants and grab a larger share of the competitive self-storage market.

Big Jim Self Storage & Wine Cellar
Location: Sarasota, Fla.
Owner: Big Jim I LLC
Built in: 2006
Size: 1,320 square feet
Locker size: Varies from 3-by-2-by-4 to 6-by-6-by-8
Décor style: Classic southern
Security measures: Zoned keypad entry, biometric fingerprinting and personal security code, individual dead-bolt locks, motion-detection surveillance cameras
Extra amenities: Wine-tasting room with TV, phone and Wi-Fi, delivery acceptance, diesel-powered backup generator
What do customers like about your wine storage? They like our security and flexible hours and the helpful and friendly staff. The wine-tasting room is also popular.

Plantation Storage
Location: Bluffton, S.C.
Owner: Plantation Storage Associates LLC
Built in: 2000
Size: 64 lockers
Locker size: Varies to accommodate six to 112 cases
Décor style: French country
Security measures: Keypad access
What do customers like about your wine storage? We have very little competition, which is a bonus. Our wine tenants enjoy the same things as our traditional self-storage tenants: our managers and customer service.

STORE Self Storage and Wine Storage
Location: Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
Owner: Jon Channing
Built in: 2008
Size: 3,600 square feet
Locker size: Varies from 2-by-2 to 11-by-4
Décor style: Tuscan with Venetian plaster, African mahogany, brushed-nickel key plates, custom-made door, cut-stone flooring
Security measures: Biometric fingerprint entry, individual door alarms, video surveillance with motion recording, personal key to lockers, personal code to enter and exit
Extra amenities: Delivery acceptance, exclusive inventory-management system, two wine cellars, automated lights, access-controlled loading and unloading
What do customers like about your wine storage? We have flexible access hours, wine-tasting classes and events, and accept wine deliveries. Theres also a wine-tasting room with a custom-made table that sits 16, and a 52-inch TV for wine presentations. Tenants also like the upscale luxury décor of the facility lobby.

N.Y. Self-Storage Operator Unpaid, Units on Lockdown in Financial-Records Fiasco

Article-N.Y. Self-Storage Operator Unpaid, Units on Lockdown in Financial-Records Fiasco

An informal arrangement between a self-storage operator and a tenant has led to lost revenue and locked self-storage units.

Last April, Mark Rekucki, president of Clifton Park Self Storage in Clifton Park, N.Y., agreed to allow McGinn, Smith & Co. store business records in 11 self-storage units. The companys president, David Smith, was a longtime customer of the facility. In addition, Rekucki was working with the company potentially leasing space at one of his other properties.

Storage for April was free while the company hunted for a new office. If storage was still needed at the end of April, a representative from McGinn Smith was expected to sign a lease and begin paying the $145 unit rental for each of the 10-by-13-foot storage units.

However, the brokerage firm was raided around April 20, and federal agents took control of the storage units and all contents. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission then obtained a court order freezing McGinn Smith's assets and filed a civil complaint accusing the firm of defrauding investors of tens of millions of dollars through sales of unregistered securities.

The records were consolidated into nine units at Clifton Park Self Storage, but no one is paying the rental feewhich equates to roughly more than $5,000, according to Reducki. The self-storage operator hesitates to lock the government out of the unitas he would normally do with a tenant who doesnt paynor can he proceed with a lien sale.

Reducki has spoken with the lawyer handling the complex case for the government. The lawyer is reviewing the case, but says its complicated because the storage was offered rent-free and no contract was signed.

Sources:

Maxi Self-Stor in CA Sells for $925k

Article-Maxi Self-Stor in CA Sells for $925k

Maxi Self-Stor in Bakersfield, Calif., sold for $925,000. The 26,990-square-foot self-storage facility is located at 1831 Golden State Ave. The property was built in 2002 and has 24-hour video surveillance and electronic gates with keypads. The seller was an institutional lender, and the buyer was a regional operator based in California.

The sale was brokered by Nick Walker, a member of Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services, a nationwide real estate investment services firm. Walker, who represented the buyer and seller, is a member of the firms National Self Storage Group in Ontario Calif.

ISS Blog

Stay Scam-Free With Self-Storage Talk

Article-Stay Scam-Free With Self-Storage Talk

I'm blessed to get to know so many hard-working, honest people in the self-storage industry. However, the sad truth is that so many others are not so honest, and they would love nothing better than to take advantage of a small-business owner or manager.

The good news is that you have a weapon to fight back with in Self-Storage Talk, the official online forum for Inside Self-Storage. A quick search for "scam" reveals discussions of several different cons industry people have been approached with. Some are recent, some are defunct (hopefully), but it's good to read through these threads and see what you need to aware of.

For example, member ssmgr posted this thread just yesterday detailing an in-person scam that a tenant pulled on a facility. The tenant, who's now delinquent and headed to auction, was running a junk haul-away business and rented a unit as a "home base" to sort through the finds. The tenant was in and out of the facility in a pickup truck constantly, hauling numerous items she acquired from apartment evictions and other places. Basically, the tenant got a free month, paid for a second, but then abandoned all the "junk" items in the unit, not at all concerned about the lien and taking all the items of value with her. The facility now has a unit full of trash, must auction it and clean it, and probably won't recoup any lost revenue.

Just two days ago, word of an e-mail scam hit the forum. You can read more about it here, but to sum it up, a scammer contacts the facility by e-mail, wanting a 5-by-10 unit for an "electronics" business but first asks the facility to receive a FedEx or DHL shipment on the scammer's behalf. It sounds fishybecause it is.

Unfortunately, scammers and spammers aren't going away, especially in the advanced age of technology in which we live. In addition, because of the nature of the self-storage business, you'll probably be a target for quite a few nefarious plots. The best thing you can do is be aware and stay informed. Do you have any scams that you would like to alert the industry about? Start a thread on SST. Of course, you have to be a registered member to post, but don't worry it's free to join and takes only a few minutes.

Overbuilt Florida Self-Storage Market May See More Distressed Sales

Article-Overbuilt Florida Self-Storage Market May See More Distressed Sales

An overbuilt self-storage market in Florida, combined with a downturn in the state’s population growth and the two-year recession, could lead to more bank-owned real estate sales.

Marcus & Millichap Real Estate Investment Services recently brokered the sale of a bank-owned facility for a fraction of the facility’s debt. Highlands Storage had an estimated debt of more than $4 million, but sold to a private investor for $1.25 million.Adam Wides, an associate and financial analyst with Marcus & Millichap, said more distressed sales could be on the horizon.

The Florida self-storage market experienced rapid growth in 2003 and 2004, Wides said. But many facilities are now having trouble maintaining occupancy. At the time of the sale, Highlands Storage occupancy was 6 percent.

According to the Self Storage Association, nearly 8,700 self-storage facilities were built nationwide during 2004 and 2005.

Source:  The Ledger,  Self-Storage Sites Taking Hit

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The Courageous Tale of 'Steady Eddie': Self-Storage Manager Faces Tenant Shooter

Article-The Courageous Tale of 'Steady Eddie': Self-Storage Manager Faces Tenant Shooter

I was contacted this week by a  self-storage owner who operates a couple of facilities in Kentucky. On Aug. 7, one of his managers endured a harrowing experience with two storage tenants, a 30-something-year-old couple undergoing separation. Below is the heroic tale of "Steady Eddie," who faced potential homicide and tenant suicide on what was otherwise a languid, hot Saturday in Louisville, Ky.

*************

Ed Holt is the resident manager of A-1 Self Storage in Louisville, Ky. Ed is 69 years young and will turn 70 later this month. Like managers at many other facilities, Ed is a one-man show. In fact, hes been the only employee at A-1 for the entire 15 years since the facility was built. The 52,000-square-foot facility constructed of concrete block walls and steel roofing is in a residential area on the east end of townthe good end of town. Until recently, it was a peaceful part of town.
 
It was another hot, humid August day. The hottest summer in many years. Perhaps the hottest summer ever. Psychologists claim humans turn more violent during summers such as these. This day was to be no exception.
 
Six weeks earlier, a woman rented a 10-by-15 storage unit. She was the named tenant on the lease. Her boyfriend accompanied her on this day and a few subsequent days as well. All was fine between them.
 
A few weeks later, the boyfriend shows up to pay the rent. In addition, he requests to change the name on the lease to his own. Lastly, he wanted to change the electronic gate-access code. On this day, Ed asked the 33-year-old man if things were OK between he and his girlfriend. Ed also inquired as to whether the original named tenant approved of this transfer? The man replied yes to both questions.
 
Around 1:25 p.m. on this slow and quiet Saturday, Ed was fighting off sleep when he heard what sounded like a fire cracker just outside his office window. What he actually heard was a gunshot.
 
All was not well with the couple. They were going through a separation. They drove separate vehicles through the electronic gate. She followed him through. After removing her last possessions from the unit, she tried her code, which had been removed from the system three days earlier. The male would not share his new code with the ex-girlfriend. She drove 30 feet away and parked next to Eds office. Before she could exit her new maroon pickup truck to ask Ed to open the gate, the ex-boyfriend was standing between the building and the truck with a semi-automatic pistol sticking through the open passenger-side window and aimed at the female drivers head.
 
The shot Ed heard was the one that blew out the rear window of the pickup truck, only inches from the womans head. The shooter then pointed the gun at his own head. The female got out of the truck and quickly walked around to the shooter. She grabbed his arm, pulled it down and said, You dont want to do that.
 
Ed had moved to the rear door of the office and was watching through the narrow view lite. The door window is 4 inches wide and 20 inches high. The female turned, saw Ed, and bolted inside the building saying, Hes going to kill me. The man was right on her heals and followed her inside.
 
Ed shouted at the man, Get out of here! The man actually turned to leave and said, Shes with the agency, man. As soon as he left, Ed pushed the lock on the door handle. He did not insert a key to lock the deadbolt, he merely locked the handle. The female was phoning 911 from the office phone in the lobby.
 
Ed went to his office window to observe the man. After pacing about outside, the agitated man tried to re-enter the building but discovered the door had been locked. He then tore a screen from an office window. The female quickly locked herself in the restroom off the lobby.
 
Meanwhile, Ed retrieved a 38-caliber revolver, the one he had purchased a few years earlier from his uncle, a retired security guard, for $25. He never dreamed he would ever use it; he merely purchased it because it was so inexpensive. At the time, Ed thought it would be a nice insurance policy to keep the pistol nearby.
 
The man then shot two bullets through the view lite of the heavy, commercial, hollow, metal office door. The glass in the window was the quarter-inch thick polished wire type designed to prevent break-ins. The shooter used his pistol to expand the opening in the glass. He reached in to turn the handle to open the door. Upon extracting his hand from the tiny opening, he cut himself and began splattering a good deal of blood. The shooter was now entering the building.
 
Ed had not handled a weapon in years. In fact, he had never even shot this pistol. Now he was aiming it at the armed man who just shot his way into the building, the man walking down the corridor, searching for his ex-girlfriend.
 
Nine out of 10 people would have emptied their pistol at the crazed younger man as soon as he stepped into the building. Ten out of 10 trained police officers would have placed two rounds into the chest cavity of the suspectbut not Ed, a lean, six-foot-six gentle giant who is always quick to lend a helping hand or a sympathetic ear. Ed knew this guy. He had enjoyed a few conversations with the man during his brief visits these past few weeks. The absolute last thing Ed wanted to do was to shoot this guy, and yet he had very few options remaining.
 
The shooter is nearing the end of the hallway; this is a very small office. But as he slowly walks nearer to where Ed was standing, his gun remains pointed at the floor. Ed yells, Stop! The shooter continues and responds, Im not going to shoot you, or her; Im going to shoot myself. The shooters eyes are darting around looking for his ex-girlfriend. The hunter is searching for his frightened prey. At the end of the hallway, the shooter turns toward the lobby and the closed bathroom door. The same door that is always open, left open unless someone is within. Always left open.
 
The shooters gun starts to rise and Ed is thinking, He is going to shoot through the door. Ed sternly tells the shooter, You need to leave. You need to leave now!
 
Winston Churchill once said, Few things in life are as invigorating as having been shot at without result. Ed is full of vigor. His senses are on full alert. Everything seems to be moving in slow motionexcruciatingly slow. Ed has the shooter in his gun sights. His gun is leveled on the shooter. Ed becomes saddened as he realizes he is going to have to shoot this guy, shoot him before he shoots through the bathroom door.
 
But rather than aiming the gun on the door, the shooters gun continues to rise ... Not in Eds direction, as Ed has positioned himself at 90 degrees from the bathroom door, a position that permits him a slight advantage. If the shooter turns toward Ed, Ed will have a split second in which to make the decision to squeeze the trigger. The mans gun rises to his own head, and he gets a puzzled look on his face. He looks at his weapon and lowers it. The gun has jammed. The shooter pulls back the semi-automatics slide to clear the jammed round, which drops to the floor. Ed then shouts, Get out of here now, or Ill shoot you myself!
 
The shooter then departs through the front door. Ed quickly locks the front door and relocks the rear door. He now gets to relax for a moment. The woman remains in the bathroom and will not come out. The police investigation reveals the shooter was of the mistaken belief that his ex-girlfriend worked for the CIA. (She does not.)
 
The shooter then inputs his gate code and re-enters the compound. The shooter tries to re-enter through the rear door. The shooter is now peering into the office window and sees Ed on the phone with 911. Ed wisely ducks out of view and stays so until the police arrive.
 
Rather than getting into his own car, the shooter climbs into his ex-girlfriends pickup truck and drives around a few buildings within the facility compound. Soon he is on the wide rear drive and gaining speed as he heads toward the locked, 24-foot-wide, sliding, cantilevered, chain-link gate. The truck plows through the gate, pulling it from the fence row. The damaged gate is bent at a 60-degree angle and is standing straight up, blocking the side road, forming an 8-foot-tall barrier. If one intentionally tried to place the gate in that position to block the road, they could not have done a better job.
 
The shooter backs up and drives on the grass to get around the gate. He drives less than a mile away and enters the couples formerly shared apartment. He proceeds to attempt a failed suicidal drug overdose.
 
Meanwhile, four police cruisers are racing toward the mini-storage facility with sirens blaring. Eds and the ex-girlfriends nightmares are almost over. But the police vehicles fly by the front entrance, and the anxiety that was about to be relieved continues to build. At this time, Ed doesnt know where the shooter is. The police turn down the side street, heading toward the rear entrance. Evidently the police had multiple calls, and someone from the adjacent apartment complex must have described the scene at the rear gate. The police were hoping to catch the shooter at the rear entrance.
 
The police arrive at the couples apartment shortly afterward and promptly arrest the shooter. After cuffing the man, the police begin to confirm his identity. Upon calling in the information to perform the routine cross check, the police discover he has two outstanding arrest warrants.
 
About two hours later, the police crime scene investigator wraps things up. The yellow police tape is removed and the shell-casing markers on the driveway are retrieved. Eds heart rate is still a little fast, but getting closer to normal. He grabs a broom and begins sweeping up the broken glass. (Ed likes to keep things tidy.) 

The days events would have played out entirely different had it not been for Eds phenomenal patience and courage. Very few people are capable of exercising the restraint Ed displayed. I recently heard of a new medal the Obama Administration is contemplating issuing to solders who display courageous restraint. It is given to soldiers who restrain from returning fire at enemy combatants when civilians are nearby. Ed is very deserving of such a medal. No doubt his new nickname should be Steady Eddie. 

*************
 
According to the author, Ed was not even done sweeping the floor when another young woman walked through the front door saying, My boyfriend and I are breaking up. Our unit is in his name, but my stuff is in it. I have both keys and want to retrieve my stuff, but I dont have a gate code... Ever have one of those days?

Story submitted by Kevin Cunningham of Cunningham Overhead Doors & Windows in Louisville, Ky.

Police Investigate Break-In at Braintree, Mass., Self-Storage Facility

Article-Police Investigate Break-In at Braintree, Mass., Self-Storage Facility

A break-in at Castle Self-Storage in Braintree, Mass., is being investigated by police, who responded to an alarm at the facility on Tuesday. The front glass door was smashed, and video-surveillance tapes show a man using a hammer to pry open two interior unit doors.
 
The burglar was a 30-year-old white male, about 5 feet, 10 inches tall and 160 pounds. He had brown hair and was wearing black pants, a green zip-up sweatshirt and a white t-shirt.
 
The man left without taking anything, according to the police chief.
 
Source: Braintree Forum, Commercial break investigated in Braintree

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Self-Storage REITs Inefficient Based on Revenue Per Employee, SmarTrend Says

Article-Self-Storage REITs Inefficient Based on Revenue Per Employee, SmarTrend Says

The self-storage real estate investment trusts (REITs) are among the five most inefficient companies in the specialized REITs industry, according to Comtex SmarTrend. The analysis is based on revenue per employee, a measure used by analysts to compare the productivity of companies in the same industry.
 
According to SmarTrend, Extra Space Storage is the least efficient, which an RPE of $139K. Sovran Self Storage ranks second at $184K, with U-Store-It Trust and Public Storage Inc. following at $227K and $331K, respectively. The fifth company on the list is Cogdell Spencer, with an RPE of $435K.

Regardless, SmarTrend is bullish on shares of Public Storage. Its subscribers were alerted to buy on July 13 at $94.69. The stock has risen 7.2 percent since the alert was issued.
 
Source: Comtex Smartrend, Extra Space Storage is Among the Companies in the Specialized REITs Industry With the Lowest Level of Efficiency (EXR, SSS, YSI, PSA, CSA)

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Making the Most of Your Tradeshow Dollars: Self-Storage Operators Get Tips for Maximizing Their Conference Experiences

Article-Making the Most of Your Tradeshow Dollars: Self-Storage Operators Get Tips for Maximizing Their Conference Experiences

Tradeshows designed for the-self storage industry provide a wealth of new information, updates on industry trends, education and networking opportunities. They serve many valuable purposes for attendees including professional development and business growth.

But attending an industry event can be costly. Show registration and travel expenses can have a big price tag. Factor in the time youre away from your business, and its no small investment. Is it really worth it? Absolutely.

The key to making the most of your tradeshow dollars is proper planning and good follow-through. What you get out of a conference is directly proportioned to what you put in! How you plan for and follow up on the event will determine how much value you receive. Here are some steps you can take before, during and after to make the most of your experience.
 
Before the Show

Review the agenda. Choose the sessions of interest to you, and then create a schedule. Look for specific opportunities to learn things that directly impact your business. Plan to attend a seminar during every available time slot. Determine which roundtable discussions will benefit you most. Look at specialized sessions that fit your business such as legal seminars or management workshops.

Maximize your coverage. If more than one person from your company is attending the show, split up and attend different sessions. Each person should take notes and be ready to share what hes learned after the show.

Expand your horizons. Attend at least one session that shows the industry from a different perspective than your own. For example, if you work on the operational side of the business (management), attending a session on the development side could bring you fresh insight.

Meet others. Make a list of the people you want to see at the show and schedule time with them in advance if possible. Set a goal for how many new people youd like to meet, including industry leaders. Pack plenty of business cards. 
 
During the Show

Stick to your schedule. Its easy to get sidetracked, skip sessions or change your agenda once youre there. Only make changes if you really think it will be beneficial. Its also easy to get distracted by wanting to sight-see or have a good time. To make the most of the show, remember youre there to learn.

Take notes at the sessions. First, itll help you remember everything youve learned. Second, youll want to share this information with your colleagues. Jot down all inspirations you get from the information presented, even if its just a short note to jog your memory later when you can more thoroughly explore the idea. Stay to the end of each session. Its rude to the presenter to leave early, and often the good information is at the end.

Participate in sessions. Ask questions, and share ideas and information. Seek the people who seem to have the resources or information that could benefit your business. Sessions often encourage participants to open a healthy discussion.

Consider new ideas. Listen to your peers at the show. Different things work for different people. The show is an opportunity to try on different concepts for your business and see if they fit.

Step out of your comfort zone.  Introduce yourself and network. You may see vendors or others youve only spoken to on the phone. Collect business cards from the people you meet; jot down notes on the back of their cards to help you remember key points about them.

Find solutions. Make it a point to seek resources and solutions for your problem areas. For example, if youre consistently having gate issues, talk to the gate vendors and see what solutions they have. Explain the issue, determine who can help, and schedule time to follow up after the show.

No clumping. Dont spend too much time with your fellow staff or company representatives, especially if you see them daily. Youre at the show to learn from others. Separate yourself from the other staff and schedule time to regroup at specific times or places.  Breakfast or a late dinner can be a great opportunity to talk about the show while not consuming valuable event time.
 
After the Show

Group pow-wow. Schedule time to recap the show with the key players in your company. Let each attendee share his thoughts with the group.

Review your notes and ideas. Create a plan and timeline to implement those ideas within the next 90 days. Do this the first day youre back in the office. If you wait, youll lose the urgency, and a lot of those good concepts (along with potential profit) will fade away.

Reach out. Call or send a note to the people you met and follow up on any action items you discussed. Use this as a chance to solidify new relationships and continue the knowledge sharing.

Get involved. Think about what skills or knowledge you have that could benefit the industry and consider how to get involved at a future show. Maybe you could be a roundtable leader or session speaker. Contact the show presenters and offer your services for the future. Getting involved is a great way to step up your exposure in the industry, enhance your own personal growth, and confirm your commitment to being proactive in your business.

Considering the value and importance of what you can gain from an industry tradeshow experience, its a bargain.
 
Linnea Appleby is president of Sarasota, Fla.-based PDQ Management Solutions Inc., which specializes in the management of self-storage properties and offers complimentary services such as operational consulting, new-facility startup, property audits and the Income Finder Service.  For more information, call 941.377.3451; e-mail [email protected]; visit www.pdqmanagementsolutions.com.

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Public Storage Wants to Expand Self-Storage Complex in Seattle

Article-Public Storage Wants to Expand Self-Storage Complex in Seattle

Public Storage, a self-storage real estate investment trust (REIT), hopes to expand its self-storage complex in South Lake Union, Seattle.

Public Storage recently filed the preliminary paperwork with Seattle planning officials for the addition of a five-story building. The new proposed building would be located just south of the REIT’s historic five-story brick warehouse, which was built in 1914 as a Ford auto plant. A newer, shorter building currently on the property would be demolished.  

The city’s Queen Anne/Magnolia Design Review Board will consider the plan at a Sept. 1 meeting. The development will also require approval from the city’s Landmarks Preservation Board because the site is a designated historic landmark.

Source:  The Seattle Times,  Public Storage Wants to Expand at South Lake Union Complex

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