We are a nation of entrepreneurs – over 99% of businesses in the UK are classed as an SME (Small to Medium Enterprise). Around 76% of these are single person businesses – and that number grows almost every year.

Here at Cookes we know all about being a small business – after all, our sister business, Cookes Furniture, started in 1946 with one man, and remains a family run business today. That’s partly why we love to help small businesses grow. The spirit of cooperation and supporting Buy Local campaigns keeps the West Midlands thriving.

Most small businesses start from home. There are no rental fees, which means you can put every penny into building your customer base.

But, as boxes start to take over your hallways and pile up in your bedroom, what do you do when you need more space? Taking on a formal business premises can be a daunting thought – long contracts, high rates and the added pressure to bring in high enough sales every month.

The benefits of self storage for small businesses

Flexible storage space.

Cookes self storage has a variety of different sized units, so you only pay for the space you need. And as you expand, your storage unit can expand with you.

Secure and safe.

Storage units have more security than most business premises. At Cookes we have 24 hour CCTV surveillance and PIN access control with limits access to staff and authorised customers.

No lengthy contracts.

Whether your business is growing, or you just need seasonal space, self storage contracts can be as short term as you need. Flexibility is key for small businesses.

No overheads.

No electricity, gas, water rates, council tax . . . Just one rental fee to cover, so that you can keep your hard earned cash where it should be – in your growing business.

Your health and wellbeing

Of course, removing all the stock and clutter from your home has other benefits – keeping the family happy and giving them room to move being one of them. The other is helping you to separate work and home lives, achieving a very necessary balance for your health and wellbeing.

We love to support small businesses – it’s how we started, after all. So, if you are just thinking of expanding, or one of the thousands of online sellers looking for a place to keep stock – or just fed up of seeing your work life taking over you home, call us now to see how we can help you.

Call Cookes on 0121 285 5197 or email info@cookesstorage.co.uk.

Business Self Storage

December has arrived, and most businesses are gearing up for the busiest few weeks of the year. The 5 weeks of the festive season can account for up to half a year’s revenue for many small retailers. With every retailer – on and offline – in competition for consumers, it’s vital that business owners have prepared in advance.

Small businesses in particular have to juggle a variety of factors over the festive season that can impact on their ability to meet customer needs – staff holidays and sickness, cash flow and holiday pay, delivery demands and increases in theft. And there’s still the Christmas party to organise.

One aspect that’s vital to your sales this December is having enough of every product in place, particularly popular items that make up a large part of your profits. With online shopping, next day deliveries and plenty of options, consumers are not likely to hang around long if you hang up the ‘out of stock’ sign.

The issue many small businesses face is a lack of space. Whether you have a physical shop or sell entirely online, all the additional stock has to be put somewhere while you wait for the orders to flood in.

Stacking haphazardly in corridors and backrooms will likely result in items being damaged or lost, while the time taken to hunt down each order for wrapping and stamping all adds to delays in sending items out and meeting customer demands.

The advantages of offsite business storage

There’s an easy solution to toppling box piles though, and that’s taking advantage of short term business self-storage units. Off-site storage has a lot of benefits for smaller businesses – in fact more and more retailers are using them on a regular basis, or running their business from their storage site entirely.

Here’s why inventory storage could be the solution – and bring you a big increase in profits this Christmas.

1. Rental agreements are on a short term or monthly basis – no year-long contracts and huge overheads here.
2. The size of the unit you take is also flexible, so you don’t need to pay for a mass of empty space – just take the unit that meets your needs.
3. Indoor off-site storage is dry and clean. There’s no need to worry about stock getting dirty or damaged. An indoor business storage facility is often temperature controlled as well – so even food and drink can be stored safely.
4. With CCTV and often PIN access controls in place, your stock is safe and secure. Some stock storage facilities even offer a reception service, accepting deliveries so that you don’t need to worry about time spent waiting while you could be out working.
5. If your business is already overflowing with boxes, crates and festive chaos, but you don’t have time to move it all, then the right self-storage providers can even solve that problem. Cookes Storage in Sutton Coldfield will even come and collect your goods for you – so that all you need to do is make sales and see your profits soar.
6. Once you’ve organised your stock in your unit, you’ll be able to locate individual items with ease and get everything packed and ready for shipping in no time at all – meaning you can pack and shift more in one day and meet more customer demands.

Finally, once the festive season is over you’ll be able to see at a glance what, if any, stock is left over and get it all marked down in time for the January sales before leaving your temporary business premises – until the next seasons demand begin.