Extra space when you need it

Secreted away in the beautiful South Devon countryside is Adrian and Dawn Dayment’s thriving self storage container business.

Broadley Park Self Storage, which started in May 2020 during the height of the covid pandemic, uses a small corner of Broadley Park Farm. Adrian was the 3rd generation to run the farm, and his son, Richard, now runs the farm, which has given Adrian and Dawn the opportunity to look at diversification projects.

 

Simple to run with scalable growth

Before deciding to start the self storage business, Adrian and Dawn gathered feedback from various family, friends and employees. The decision to diversify into the storage business was based on a strong demand in the local area for individuals and businesses looking for storage space. As the storage business requires a minimum amount of input from Adrian, he has been able to continue helping on the farm and carrying out some agricultural contracting work, while Dawn ensures that all the paperwork, invoicing, and bookkeeping are kept up to date.

Initially, the self storage business consisted of five 20-foot storage containers, and within a couple of weeks, all five containers had been rented out. Today, the storage business has 45 containers, including 43 x 20-foot containers and 2 x 10-foot containers, all of which continue to be fully let.

Whilst there is a lot of competition in the self storage market, Adrian and Dawn are confident that their ability to provide a beneficial and flexible service to customers within a 15-20 mile radius means that their storage containers will always be in demand. Over the next couple of years, they plan to expand their business to 50 containers.

 

The most effective form of marketing

Unusually for a new business, Broadley Park Self Storage has not had to deploy the typical marketing activities of having a website, social media presence or placing adverts. Instead, from day one, the business has grown through word of mouth referrals from friends and the local community, along with returning customers. The only online channel they have adopted is Google Maps, which helps new customers to find the site.

This low-key approach to marketing has resulted in a constant supply of customers. On average, most people rent a storage container for two years; however, two of their customers have been with them since they started in 2020. Some use it for storage for their business, and some use the facility to store their furniture when they are moving house. Others use it as a temporary stopgap, but the different types of usage mean that Adrian and Dawn can accommodate most customer’s needs.

 

Using an accountant from out of the area

Adrian and Dawn had been using a local accountant but felt that the firm was not as proactive as it could be in tax planning and reducing their tax liabilities. Their bank manager recommended Haines Watts, and they moved their personal and business affairs to the Launceston office in 2017. It is a decision they have never regretted. Haines Watts prepares the business’s annual accounts and calculates and prepares their tax returns, ensuring the correct reliefs and allowances are applied to keep the tax liabilities to a minimum.

Adrian and Dawn said;

“We cannot recommend the team at Haines Watts highly enough. We have an excellent relationship with everyone in their office, from the reception staff to the partners. The fact that they are not local to us is not a problem. We have a face-to-face meeting at least once a year, but they always come back to us very promptly through email, text or phone if we have any questions during the year. We also like how they train and develop their younger staff members, so they become experienced accountants. With this strategy, we are confident that our tax and accounting needs will always be met, now and in the future.”

 

To find out more about Broadley Park Self Storage, please call 07815 310254.