Self Storage facilities first appeared in the United States of America in the 1960’s and since that time the industry has grown to account for nearly 53,000 facilities across the country. There is more than 2.35 billion square feet of self storage in the U.S., or a land area equivalent to three times Manhattan Island under roof.

The first facility in the history of self storage was in Odessa, Texas, and was called “A1 U-Store-It, U-Lock-It, U-Carry the Key.” Russ Williams, who had worked in the oil industry for much of his life, enjoyed fishing in his free time and needed somewhere to keep extra equipment and boats. He realised other firms in the oil industry could use similar storage units for commercial purposes, and so bought a group of apartments and garages.

Self Storage did not arrive in the United Kingdom until the early 1980’s, initially in the London area, but today there are more than 800 facilities found across the country.  The industry continues to grow steadily in the UK and for the last five years has recorded growth rates of between 8% and 15%, fuelled by the growth of multi-site operators as well as smaller businesses looking to diversify into the sector.

 

The History of Self Storage 1

 Barretts Self Storage has been based on the Monument Business Park in Chalgrove since 1984 and we continue to grow. In recent years we have been busy adding new services, such as caravan, motorhome, car, HGV storage, open storage, we also offer pick, pack and dispatch services, mailboxes and we sell packaging online.

 

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If you need any further information please contact us on 01865 891406 or Email Us