Following what is one of Australia’s largest self-storage industry deals, the National Mini Storage facility at Nerang is now part of Queensland’s largest self-storage company and the third largest in Australia.
In a $65 million deal, the Leyshon Group and The Stowaway Self Storage Group have formed a joint venture to acquire 10 National Mini Storage sites located in South-East Queensland and Adelaide from investment bank, Babcock & Brown.
The Leyshon Group, a private investment and property development company headed by Mr Bob Bryan, owns and operates four self-storage facilities in Brisbane under the “Premier” brand. Stowaway is controlled by the Catsoulis family and currently owns and operates two storage facilities in Brisbane, at Oxley and Aspley.
Managing Director of The Leyshon Group, Mr Geoff McMahon, said at this stage the joint venture had not acquired Leyshon’s “Premier” facilities, with the deal contained to the National Mini Storage and Stowaway Self Storage facilities.
Operating under the National Mini Storage name, the new company will initially own and operate 12 facilities, with that number expected to grow as the company identifies and secures suitable greenfield and existing sites around Australia.
“While the Premier Self Storage facilities are not included in the deal, we have entered into a management agreement with the directors of Stowaway Self Storage to manage the day to day operations of all self storage facilities, including four “Premier” sites,” Mr McMahon said.
Stowaway’s operations managers, Andrew Catsoulis and Peter Greer will take up positions as directors of the new company, and will assume management control of the expanded portfolio.
“We believe the Australian self-storage industry is set to boom, following international trends in the United States and Europe,” said Mr Catsoulis.
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“We intend to be at the forefront of this growth and will combine the best operational and marketing aspects of all businesses to create innovative storage solutions and service standards unparalleled in the Australian market.”
“The increasingly mobile nature of our population, combined with demand generated from apartment and inner city living provides strong drivers for residential storage growth. In addition many local businesses are already well aware of the benefits and flexibility offered by using secure off-site storage space to grow their business, eliminating the need for cumbersome long term leases of commercial or warehouse premises.”
Mr Catsoulis commented that the expanded portfolio provided an ideal combination of established facilities and sites with strong potential for further growth, giving the new entity an unmatched coverage throughout south-east Queensland and Adelaide.
He said the new company hoped to expand its presence into Sydney and Melbourne over the next 18 to 24 months.
The National, Premier, StowAway portfolio of facilities encompasses 13 sites in south-east Queensland and three in Adelaide, representing a gross floor area of around 90,000 square metres. Many of the sites are currently operating at or in excess of 90% occupancy.
“Demand for self storage space throughout Australia is growing.
“Currently the domestic market accounts for the greatest demand. However, demand from the business sector is steadily increasing as the cost of non-income earning on-premise storage space is identified as a significant business cost,” Mr Catsoulis said.
