Cushman & Wakefield has released its 2023 UK Self Storage Industry Report, in partnership with the Self Storage Association.

The 2023 report looks at investor appetite, growth performance, public awareness, and the impact of the current cost of living crisis on the sector, analysing a range of data points from operator, customer, and public surveys.

The self storage industry remains buoyant, and operators’ revenues increased 6.5% to £990m in 2022 as the sector’s growth continued, despite the pressures on household budgets. Below is a summary of the key findings from both the operator survey and the customer survey.

Operator survey
Rental rates continued to increase in 2022, rising 4% to £27.19 per square foot. However, considering that inflation in the UK grew from 5% in January 2022 to a peak of 9.6% in October last year, this increase was less than inflation.

Occupancy across the UK stayed stable at 83.3%. Optimal occupancy for a self storage facility is usually between 85% and 90%, as the store should always have product to sell. Often, stores that are close to 100% occupancy could be more profitable by increasing prices for all customers and decreasing occupancy slightly, according to the report.

Considering this data includes stores that have recently opened or expanded and are in the fill-up stage, it is to be expected that overall occupancy levels would be below 85%. There was a significant increase in occupancy during the pandemic, and this has not been lost, despite an estimated 5% growth in supply for the industry in 2022.