If you’re an avid listener of Dean Booty’s Hacking Self Storage podcast, or you follow him on social media, you’re probably no stranger to the fact he’s using Stora for his new facility, but you’ll also know he only features companies he really believes in and we are delighted to have his support at Stora.
It’s important to say from the get go that Dean Booty is not sponsored or paid to endorse us. He just really believes in our journey and loves what Stora is doing for the industry.
But don’t just take our word for it – listen to his show!
Episode #292 - Why I chose Stora?
If you’re new here or new to Dean Booty, you might not have caught his recent podcasts where he told his audience exactly why he chose Stora.
We don’t want to give away too much but here are a few highlights:
- Dean describes Stora CEO, Gavin Shields as the ’OG’ of self storage and how our customer-first approach of listening to our customers has created an “amazing vision for self storage”
- “This will be the software that has everything for you…I believe the software market needed disruption and I believe this is it.”
- “There is nothing like it out there.”
- “If you are coming into the industry fresh and haven’t got any current connections to any software provider it’s a no-brainer. You should use Stora. It’s so simple, it’s so easy, it integrates, the websites already set up for you.”
Watch the full interview:
Episode #293 - Gavin Shields, CEO and Founder of Stora is on the podcast
Then if that wasn’t enough, Dean had Stora CEO, Gavin Shields, “the most talked about person in self storage at the minute”, on the show to pick his brains about everything from automation and churn rate to the best sales approach for self storage websites.
Some highlights:
- “You don’t need to be good at self storage. Stora can do it all for you.” – Dean Booty
- Using Stora in his own facilities Gavin is getting a S22.5k a month in revenue
- Gavin describes Stora as: “the Shopify of self storage…if you want to optimize and grow your revenue and dramatically cut the costs of administering your business…Stora gives you everything you need to get online, process rentals and payments online, do your online check-in, help people move in, everything.”
- “The self storage industry is going to move completely online, the same way that hotels and airlines have.” - Gavin Shields
- Gavin explains how his 9000 sq ft facility filled effectively 70% faster than another operator he spoke to, who had twice the available population. The difference being online rentals and payments vs the need to place a phone call or email for an estimate.
- The data we have seen so far supports that online reservations and payments are better for converting website visitors into paying tenants.
Advice from Gavin for self storage startups
- “Find something that allows you to get started. Don’t worry about it being perfect, just get started. If that means opening up a container site as a way of learning, that’s a great way to do it.”
- “When looking at locations look at the population within a 5 mile radius and determine the competitive situation. What size are they? Are they full? If there isn’t 1 square foot of net rentable space per person already being offered in that area, there’s room for your business.”
- “If outdoor container space is supplying the majority of space to the population already, don’t be disheartened. Outdoor and indoor facilities are actually different customer bases so if there’s little-to-no indoor space being offered, you will find enough demand for it, and vice versa!”
- “If you’re thinking of trying indoor, get a 40 year lease to get you started. Don’t worry about purchasing while you are still learning.”
Get more advice from Gavin in our How To Become A Self Storage Millionaire blog.
Want to learn more?
We’ve already onboarded facilities across North America, the UK, Europe, and Australia. If you’d like to discuss how Stora can work for you, set up a call with Gavin today.
