This year, Hogleaze Storage is celebrating a huge milestone… we’ve now been in the storage business for 20 years! Whilst we’ve seen many changes over this time, we thought we would look at the history of self storage as a whole and see how much it’s changed since 2000.
Self storage two decades ago
Did you know that self storage only arrived in the UK in the 1980s following a boom in the USA? Whilst this was 40 years ago, it didn’t really become popular here until the early 2000s. Data released by the SSA (Self Storage Association) showed that the average length of stay increased from an average period of 22 weeks in 2007 to 38 weeks in 2010 and has continued to increase ever since!
When the idea of self storage came to the UK all that time ago, it was very much a place to store possessions of a higher value that people couldn’t part with. Nowadays, this isn’t the case as some people even use the units to store the junk they’ve been hoarding or to hold business stock.
The self storage industry in 2020
You may be surprised to hear, but the SSA estimated that in 2019 the self storage industry was worth a whopping £720 million, covering approximately 45.6 million sq ft. That’s a lot of space being filled up with the nation’s belongings!
As we buy more stuff and acquire less space, it’s no surprise that many of us turn to self storage units to avoid our homes looking like warehouses. The industry really is only just kicking off and we don’t expect it to slow down anytime soon.
As we expect more modern, personalised services in day to day life in 2020, the same has been required from self storage where more modern technology is now utilised. You’ll now notice that self storage companies are starting to become much smarter when it comes to the technology within their self storage compounds. Gone are the days when you can only visit during strict opening hours… 24/7 access is almost a given with most larger self storage sites (something you can find available at our Dorchester storage site).
Security is also of high importance as it becomes more intuitive and automated to ensure that your belongings are kept safe at all times. This may include high tech CCTV, key fob access and number plate recognition.
The future of the industry
With more and more self storage businesses popping up all over the place, it will be commonplace for the majority of people to use them at some point in their life. Whether this is for a house move, business relocation or just a spring clean. But how is the industry going to keep evolving?
We’ve noticed a real trend of people storing with us for longer periods of time, consumers no longer just need a one-off storage solution but somewhere they can return to time and time again. This also means the storage units are being used for different purposes, with some people basically running their business from their unit instead of a home office. A great place to keep stock and archive important documents. We can’t wait to see what types of items become storage trends in the next 5 years.
There has also been a huge uplift since we started out in 2000 of people using our online contact form to get a quote as opposed to picking up the phone. Everything is now done online, so expect some exciting changes coming soon to how you book your unit. Whilst we still love to chat with our customers, we know that everyday life gets in the way and sometimes you just need things done with the click of a button.
Need Dorset self storage?
Whilst there is an estimated 1,582 self storage sites in the UK, we hope that our convenient locations in Weymouth and Dorchester and the knowledge that you’ll receive a 5-star service when storing with us will make Hogleaze top of your list when choosing self storage in Dorset.
Read some of customer reviews here >>
If you need more information about what we can offer, check out these recent blogs…
- Why choose Hogleaze Storage for business storage >>
- Everything you need to know about our Weymouth storage site >>
We hope you found this article on the history of self storage interesting… Ready to start storing? With no deposit required, you can get started almost immediately. Get in contact with Dorchester for self storage and vehicle storage on 01305 889777 or Weymouth on 01305 830000.