When considering storage units, the natural assumption is that they’re only for the safe storing of your goods or perhaps even your vehicle. What you might not have considered before is the potential to run a business from a storage unit. So, is it possible? Storage units, after all, are extra spaces that you can rent out, so it makes sense to consider this extra space could be used for something more than simply your belongings sitting idle.
While renting out a storage unit is never going to be the same as renting out an official business office with a business address, a storage unit does offer the potential for running a business in certain capacities. While it can’t be used as an extensive working office for a busy team in the same way a traditional office could, it offers a helpful service in using and storing business items or managing a small business operation from a contained storage unit.
What Kind of Businesses Can Be Run from a Storage Unit?
The most obvious business requirement in terms of a storage unit is the potential for storing physical items or products related to your business, and there are many business runners who could make use of a storage unit.
- Startup Companies
The most common issue many startups have is not wanting to commit to a large business premises or perhaps can’t yet afford official offices until their business expands. This leaves startup companies needing a space to work with and store items while they begin their business and help it to grow.
Therefore, local storage units can provide ample space for startups to manage initial orders and safely store their product.
- Online Businesses
For businesses that deal in simple online transactions, such as selling a product to online customers, they may need somewhere easy and secure to store their products. Storage units offer the perfect spot to store all items until they are sold and then have room to easily pick and pack within the storage unit space to dispatch to their customer.
This can be ideal for small side businesses or handmade goods for those individuals who have an online shop.
- Documentation Storage
Despite the world working towards being a more paperless place, some companies still require hard copies for their filing systems. For some businesses, such as legal firms, it may be required to have a designated and safe storage space for physical files.
Therefore, storage units can be the perfect place to store hard copies without having them clutter up any official office space or if your office space simply doesn’t have the capacity to store so many files.
- Trade Companies
Independent trade people, or larger trade companies, may require somewhere safe to store much-needed tools and equipment. This can be extremely beneficial for the traveling tradesmen compared to storing equipment in a van or at home if you lack the space.
Storage units thereby provide a locked unit for keeping equipment safe overnight or when not in use.
- Home-Based Businesses
You can run many businesses easily from home, and this also includes those small online businesses mentioned above. If you’ve decided that you’d rather keep your business and home life separate, or perhaps you’re simply running out of storage space at home for your goods, then choosing a storage unit instead can provide somewhere for you to keep your goods and pack up your online orders without cluttering up your home.
- Charity Businesses
As a charity, any donation will be welcome, and for some charities, this can be large furniture items, clothes, or anything you want to be sold in your charity shop. You never want to have to turn away a donation, so it can cause a problem if you need first to take stock of items and sort before donated goods can officially be displayed in-store.
Using a storage unit can be a great spot for storing all your donated goods and then using the space to sort through and take inventory so that you can then move to official charity shops when needed.
- Event Organizations
Having all your key event equipment and business items on display or in use during events is great, but what to do with all that equipment when an event isn’t live? Storage units can provide the perfect storage place for event businesses that need somewhere to put all their gear, merchandise, or anything else relating to their events business.
Important Things to Remember if Using a Storage Unit for Your Business
While there are many benefits to using a storage unit for your business, it’s important to remember that you won’t be able to enjoy all the perks of a full business, warehouse, or office space, so there a couple of things to remember:
- Internet capabilities. As storage units aren’t working in offices, you may have trouble connecting to the internet. It may be that some storage units offer free WiFi, but with this in mind, you will be using a public network, so confidential business transactions may not be secure.
- Electrical sockets. Some storage units will not offer electrical sockets, which means you may not be able to plug in or charge electrical goods within your unit when using it, so you should plan for using travel power banks or fully charging your devices before arriving at the unit.
Can You Run a Business from a Storage Unit?
The answer is yes; you can, provided that it’s a manageable and simple operation that doesn’t require significant office space or further services. Storage units can be the perfect space for a growing business in terms of storage for products or offering a workbench to pick and pack. They’re also ideal options for startups needing a small space to work with at the beginning of their growing company.
At StorageArea.com, we can help you compare and connect with storage facilities in your area if you’re looking for space to help with your business needs.