www.insideselfstorage.com INSIDE: • Rebooting in Asia • Building in the Philippines • Growing in Australasia • Maturing in Europe • Fostering in Finland • Breaking ground in Germany • Building up in Latin America INTERNATIONAL • Weighing risk in Canada APPLYING INDUSTRY FUNDAMENTALS TO THE GLOBAL MARKET Storage operators worldwide compare their challenges, victories and goals EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE Learn what you need to be successful in any global self-storage market. Fall 2017 $15.00 US www.iss-store.com INSIDE SELF-STORAGE INTERNATIONAL I FALL 2017 FEATURES 4 The Storage Industry Surges Ahead 21 Demand on the Rise in Finland Development is surging as major population centers Although the Finnish self-storage market is still relatively continue to embrace the product and institutional new, the demand for the service is great. Cityvarasto, funding looks for scalable development partners. the country’s largest operator, is leading the way for Here’s global view of industry trends, awareness industry growth. and transactions. By Ville Stenroos By David Blum 23 Embracing Mixed-Use Development 7 The Sun Shines on Asia in Scotland A year after a fatal fire at a facility in Hong Kong, the When Storage Vault set out to build its second property, industry is starting over. Operators and investors are the company first examined the needs of its customer optimistic about growth and the opportunity to build a base. What it discovered would take the growing sustainable business platform. company down a new path. By Luigi La Tona By Amy Campbell 9 Building an Empire in the Philippines 24 An American Builds in Germany Howard Sy eschewed the family shoe business to build The market remains largely untapped and ripe for his own self-storage empire. In this interview, he offers investors. An American discusses his foray into the insight to his decision, the challenges he’s faced and market, and the challenges he faced building three plans for the future. All Seasons facilities. By ISS Staff By Todd van Steenwyk 12 Driving Growth in Australasia 26 Building Up in Latin America Australasia is the third-largest self-storage market In many international markets, the momentum globally. Read what’s driving demand in this region as for storage is going in one direction—up! Here are well as industry growth and market awareness. some factors behind multi-story development in By Makala Ffrench Castelli Latin America. By Peter Frayser 15 Is Overbuilding Imminent in Australia? 28 A Customized Business Model Despite high property prices, new projects continue to in Colombia spring up. The article questions whether overbuilding A Colombian operator is following the U.S. business is on the horizon and offers a performance overview of model but customizing it to fit consumer preferences. existing operations. Learn how this approach has allowed Bodehogar By Sam Kennard Storage to grow to five facilities. By Carlos Cardona 18 Giba Goes Green Giba Storage has grown aggressively to keep pace 29 The Canadian Growth Surge with the demand in Westmead, South Africa. Now the Canada is experiencing a real estate boom, and operator is meeting yet another need—clean energy— the country’s self-storage sector is no exception. with the addition of solar panels. However, new investors and developers face significant By Amy Campbell obstacles to entry. By H. Michael Schwartz 19 Challenges for the Maturing European Market 31 Weighing Risk vs. Reward in Canada As the market matures, it faces several trials. The While the market is healthy, some owners may be CEO of the Federation of European Self Storage jeopardizing their investment by overleveraging their Associations explores the impact of language barriers, properties. Follow this advice to stay in the black. land scarcity and more. By Michael Foy and Jaimie Walker By Rennie Schafer 33 CONTACTS ISS I 2017 International 3 www.insideselfstorage.com THE STORAGE INDUSTRY SURGES AHEAD A global perspective of trends, awareness and transactions By David Blum nternational self-storage development is surging as major Here’s another example: While year-over-year growth estimates population centers continue to embrace the product and in Mainland China for 2015-2016 show a 52 percent increase, that Iinstitutional funding looks for scalable development partners. may be only 75 additional facilities. However, the market appears to Across the globe, hot spots are emerging, and professionally be increasing at a faster pace each year. managed platforms are looking to expand. In addition, increasingly Though international development projections are low compared good industry data is becoming available, and better and more to the 600 to 1,200 new facilities projected to open in the U.S. in accurate information can be generated on these relatively the next few years, what stands out is the overall potential of these young markets. emerging markets. For example, it’s estimated there are 550 to 600 Following is an overview of global self-storage trends. I’ll storage facilities in all Latin America, which is roughly the same also discuss changes in industry awareness some of the major number of facilities in the Atlanta self-storage market. However, the transactions leading market expansion. total population in Latin America is more than 647 million compared to Atlanta’s 5.49 million. Following Industry Trends This type of potential is consistent in almost all markets around I’ve worked in the international self-storage market since 2004. the world. It’s generally understood that self-storage demand In that time, I’ve witnessed many cycles and trends. Though there’s metrics are different outside the U.S.; however, even if you more data available, when it comes to analyzing it, I can’t advise extrapolate generally accepted analytics (i.e., a target audience of enough caution. 20 percent of the population and an equilibrium of only 2 square For example, at one point, the Brazilian self-storage industry feet per person), the capacity is still huge. grew 100 percent in a short six- to seven-year period; however, that The metrics also change as industry awareness increases. For amounted to only an additional 100 facilities. Today, that growth is example, Mexico now has had a robust development cycle. The continuing at a fast pace of 25 to 30 new properties a year. estimates are that the country’s target audience for storage is now 30 percent, with a demand equilibrium of 3 square feet per person. Spreading the Word One of the things that is clearly helping to spread industry awareness and spur development is the rising occurrence of international self-storage events. For example: • In October, the Federation of European Self-Storage Associations will host its annual tradeshow, this year in Berlin. Last year’s record-setting event in Barcelona, Spain, clearly reflects the growing interest in this segment. • In May 2018, the Self-Storage Association of Asia will host its fifth annual conference, in Bangkok. • The third annual LanAm Expo, designed for the Latin American market, will be held at the end of April in Miami. • The association for the Australia and New Zealand market alternates each year between hosting an owner’s summit and a tradeshow. Another key factor is industry reporting. For example, JLL Capital Markets compiles and distributes an extensive report focusing on the industry throughout Europe. In Asia, Ipsos Business Consulting surveys and produced statistics on that Goldman Sachs invested $200 million market. Colliers International has begun gathering and presenting to fund MetroFit’s expansion in Brazil. data for Latin America. ISS I 2017 International 4 www.insideselfstorage.com Fremont Reality Capital recently purchased the Bluespace brand, which includes 30 facilities in Spain. The reports show consumer awareness is growing, and global Storage Facilities Worldwide investors see huge growth potential. However, there are still many challenges. For example, government regulatory issues persist. In 2015, it was estimated that there were approximately There’s still a basic lack of awareness of just what our industry 2,600 self-storage facilities throughout Europe, comprising is and how local laws should be applied. So, while awareness is approximately 7.5 million square meters of space. The rising, much work still needs to be done. majority of those facilities were in the United Kingdom. Watching Some Major Players United Kingdom Though there’s a willingness of major investment firms to partner on self-storage projects, a shortage of qualified platforms hampers France expansion. Several transactions over the past few years exemplify this need. Here are just a few recent transactions: • Goldman Sachs invested almost $200 million in MetroFit’s expansion in Brazil. 39.4% • Fremont Reality Capital purchased Bluespace in Spain and made a major investment in MyPlace Self Storage in Germany. • Calzada Capital Partners LLC acquired Aki KB Minibodegas in Chile. Netherlands • M3 Capital Partners acquired Quraz in Japan. 12.9% • Pátria Investimentos Ltda, the Brazilian office of The Blackstone Group, merged its Kipit brand with GuardeAqui in Brazil. Spain Global self-storage growth, though statistically still occurring on a relatively small scale, perhaps offers the greatest development opportunities. As awareness of the product continues to flourish, demand from consumers and businesses will increase. When 10.9% developers and operators build quality, investment-grade, well-managed facilities, investment funding and rapid expansion Germany follows. Expansion feeds the cycle of awareness, and metrics in 10.1% these markets will multiply. David Blum owns and operates Better Management Systems LLC, Sweden a consulting practice he launched in 2003 to assist self-storage professionals worldwide with issues of development and management. He’s worked in Europe, Greece and Israel, and 5.5% currently has clients in Mexico, South America and the United States. Since entering the industry in 1996, he’s worked as a district manager for Storage USA and vice president of operation for Budget Mini-Storage in South Florida.