Safestore Regulatory News (SAFE)

13 Oct 2008 10:01



Safestore Holdings plc

("Safestore" or the "Company")

Safestore wins UK National Training Award for Greater London

Safestore Holdings plc, the largest self storage retailer in the UK and Paris, is delighted to announce that the Company has been awarded the "Greater London Training Award, Large Employer" at this year's UK National Training Awards at a regional ceremony in Whitehall last night. 

The National Training Awards celebrate businesses, organisations and individuals that achieve outstanding success through training and development. They are run by UK Skills on behalf of the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills and are sponsored by City & Guilds. They are also supported by Investors in People. 

According to the National Training Awards, "This year's awards have shown a 28% increase in entries with 727 entries received… and 232 finalists".

For Safestore, the award reflects how successful the Company has been at integrating its staff following a number of key strategic acquisitions since 2004. Using its "Back to Basics" training methods, which were rolled out across the Company's store portfolio, Safestore has been able to successfully grow its portfolio of stores in the UK and central Paris from 24 to 113. 

Steve Williams, Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"I am delighted we have won this award, which recognises the effort we make in training our staff to a high standard, but also the success we have had over the past four years in integrating new staff following key strategic acquisitions, which has been an essential part of making us the largest self storage retailer in the UK."

Ends

For further information, please contact:

Cardew Group  T: 020 7930 0777

Nadja Vetter

Sofia Rehman

David Roach

Notes to editors:

Safestore is the largest self storage provider in the UK and the central Paris region and the second largest in the EU, in terms of number of stores, providing individual, secure self storage space and related services. Over the past four years, the number of stores increased from 24 to 113 - 89 of these plus 3 Business Centres operate under the 'Safestore' brand in the UK and 21 stores operate under the 'Une Pièce en Plus' brand in France.

The UK is the largest and most established self storage market in Europe. The UK and French markets show lower penetration rates than the US or Australia and, according to the UK Self Storage Association the UK market is expected to grow with a CAGR of 10 to 15 per cent.

This growth is supported by a number of market trends including: increased workforce mobility, social factors such as high divorce rates and an ageing population, housing stock pressure in the UK and lifestyle trends such as the growth in the home improvement market.

The Group's business model is supported by a substantial asset base, strong cashflow and a solid record of earnings which are continuing to grow.

The initiative is only open to registered charities, however political and religious organisations are not eligible to qualify.