Tag Archives: Storage

Appointments, Logistics, News

Kinaxia Logistics strengthens senior team with key appointments

Kinaxia Logistics has strengthened its senior team as part of a management restructure which will see it focus on further developing its customer proposition, driving operational efficiencies and unlocking the potential within the business.

Simon Nelson has been appointed to the new position of chief operating officer and Mark Tabor has joined Kinaxia as commercial director.

Chief executive Michael Conroy said the duo have vast experience at board level and possess great commercial acumen.

He said the appointments form part of Kinaxia’s strategy to work more closely with its customers and deliver high-quality services which are more tailored to their needs.

Simon joined Kinaxia and became managing director of its contract distribution operations after the company acquired Nelson Distribution from KNP Logistics Group last September.

Mark has over 35 years’ experience in UK and European logistics, working with a number of leading businesses including FedEx, Palletforce and Online MBT.

As Palletforce’s European development director, he oversaw the expansion of its cross-border pallet network from 11 to 30 countries and quadrupled turnover.

Michael said: “The new position of COO has been created to ensure our services more closely match our customers’ requirements. This will enable us to get closer to them, better understand their needs and deliver a service which reflects this.

“In addition, Simon will also drive efficiency across the business using technology-enabled solutions that will boost productivity while further enhancing sustainability, allowing us to generate additional value for our customers.

“Mark will play a major role as we continue to align our commercial proposition to best serve the needs of our customers with the agility to flex to quickly meet the demands of a changing marketplace.

“His appointment further reinforces our strategy to be completely aligned with our customers to deliver a stand-out experience to them and ensure we operate in a manner which drives long-term success for the business.

“With some of the highest-quality warehousing facilities in the UK, a depth of regional transport expertise and heritage that is unmatched, skilled and motivated people and a powerful palletised freight offering, we have a full end-to-end solution that can quickly adapt to our customers’ needs.”

Kinaxia, which has its headquarters in Macclesfield, Cheshire, employs more than 1,700 staff nationwide with a fleet of 800 vehicles transporting goods for the retail, leisure, food and drink and manufacturing sectors.

It has 2.7 million sq ft of strategic national warehousing facilities offering contract packing, e-fulfilment, returns management, storage services and a complete distribution service.

Midlands News, News, Storage

Self-storage company opens new branch in Shrewsbury

Self-storage company, Space Station, has announced the newest expansion to its UK operations with the opening of a new facility in Shrewsbury.

The new store boasts a sizable 57,000 square feet of storage space available for local customers and businesses, which includes up to 750 individual storage units to rent, providing a boost to the accessibility of externally sourced storage in the local Shropshire community.

After purchasing from fellow storage company, Rent a Space, Space Station officially opened it’s doors to its newest venture earlier this year but will retain the previous external branding in the short term, until planning permission is approved to change it.

Whilst the plan is to fully refurbish the premises later in the year, customers will now be greeted by Space Station uniformed staff for all their needs and queries.

Included in the facility are a variety of different sized storage units, available to rent with great flexibility, with both short- and long-term options available. Furthermore, the facility is fitted with 24/7 CCTV surveillance and even has workshops and office spaces available for rent in addition to storage units.

Space Station’s CEO Kevin Prince, said: “It’s terrific for us to be able to open our new self-storage facility in Shrewsbury.

“Having just expanded one of our newer stores in Solihull earlier this year, it’s exciting to continue the momentum and open our 11th store in the UK, offering a variety of storage solutions to customers and businesses in the Shropshire region.

“Our new store gives our customers access to individual storage unit, as well as office workspaces, which are all managed extremely well by the existing team already in place.  We are delighted that they have decided to remain in their positions, giving the existing customers a reassurance of a smooth transfer. We are excited to welcome them all to the Space Station family.”

This will be Space Station’s 11th store in the UK. The business was created by Alastair Caldwell, a former McLaren Formula 1 Team Manager, and is now owned by Heitman, a global real estate investment management firm. There are an additional ten locations in its portfolio throughout Greater London, Berkshire and Birmingham.

For more information about Space Station’s Shrewsbury store, please visit: https://www.space-station.co.uk/locations/shrewsbury-self-storage

News

Ready Steady Store are Finalists at the European FEDESSA Awards 2021!

Ready Steady Store are thrilled to announce that they’re finalists for two awards at the Federation of European Self Storage Associations (FEDESSA) Awards 2021!

With tough competition from applicants across Europe, Ready Steady Store were confirmed as finalists for both the Multi Site Operator of the Year Award and the Container Storage Facility of the Year Award.

Mehran Charania, CEO of Ready Steady Store, said: “We’re delighted for our team to be recognised on an international level – especially after a challenging year of operating during the Covid-19 pandemic. This year, FEDESSA confirmed that they had received over double the usual number of entries, so making the finals is an amazing achievement and we’re especially proud of all of our staff members who have worked so hard to provide the best possible customer service, which was key to achieving these accolades.”

The Federation of European Self Storage Associations (FEDESSA) represents the various self storage associations across Europe, including over 2,000 self storage facilities.

Ready Steady Store opened their first store in 2006 and now have 26 storage sites across the country. Whether people are looking to move home, store items whilst doing building works, decluttering their homes or are businesses looking for extra space to store documents, tools or stock, Ready Steady Store offer 24/7 access to storage units.

Appointments, News

Cleveland Containers Celebrates Southern Expansion

Following a record-breaking year of growth, Cleveland Containers are delighted to announce the launch of their new Midlands office.

Based in Wolverhampton, the new office is the latest expansion venture for Cleveland Containers who are delighted to also be welcoming Lewis Westley and Callum Davis to the company.

Fresh to the container industry, Callum has previously worked for Jaguar as a New Car Sales Executive and more recently as a Kitchen Salesman for Howdens Joinery. 

Callum said:

“The container industry is new to me but I’m sure that my strong background in sales has given me the skills required to assist our customers with their needs and any questions they may have. I’m looking forward to working alongside the rest of the team, learning all about our products and seeing how the business develops.”

 He joins fellow new starter Lewis Westley, who is well-versed in container sales after beginning his career as an apprentice more than seven years ago. 

Lewis said: “Joining Cleveland Containers has been refreshing as I have never worked with a team of this scale. Everybody is great to work with and helped me to settle in in no time. Here at Cleveland Containers, everyone is working hard to expand and take the business to the next level which is the main reason why I joined. I can see a real goal here and it’s great to see.”

The southern expansion follows Cleveland Container’s recent £1.2m new 6,000 sqft head office at Preston Farm Industrial Estate in Stockton-on-Tees, and a 2.6-acre depot and workshop in Grangetown, Middlesbrough, to allow for further growth as the demand for containers continues to increase.

Johnathan Bulmer, Managing Director of Cleveland Containers said:

“Lewis and Callum have hit the ground running and made an impressive start here at Cleveland Containers. The addition of our second office in Wolverhampton and expansion of our southern sales team serve to strengthen our position in Wales and the south of England as the UK’s leading container supplier and I am confident that they will fully support our customers in the south as they have already demonstrated that they are excellent additions to our growing sales team.”

 

News, Storage

Clever Closet Announces 500 Jobs in the UK

Clever Closet UK, the specialists in discrete under stairs and loft storage units for the home, has announced its expansion plans to create 500 new jobs across the UK during 2020.

Clever Closet, a sister company of Dragons’ Den winner, Smart Storage in Ireland, is looking to recruit across: Birmingham, Bristol, Camberley, Coventry, Crawley, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Nottingham and Stevenage. This expansion also includes roles in Newport in Wales, as well as Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland.

The firm is planning to create the new roles in: engineering/installation, logistics, operations, manufacturing, sales & marketing.

The company was founded by CEO Paul Jacob, a former construction engineer, as he addressed a family storage crisis at home, and to date, the business has sold more than 40,000 patent-approved storage units.

Paul Jacob, Clever Closet CEO said:

“Based on our significant growth and success to date, we see this expansion in the UK as natural next step for the business. We’ve observed that both new and existing homes in the UK are generally inadequately built to cater for the modern family, and many fail to provide the required storage space for smart and affordable living.

He continued:

“Our customised storage units are specifically designed to tackle this 21st Century living problem, by optimising the storage space available, while integrating these clever units seamlessly within the design of the home environment. The days of excessive shelving, unattractive hanging space and overflowing shoe cupboards are over.”

Clever Closet plans to primarily target the 11.5 million UK semi-detached homes, and with its new expert nationwide fitters, aims to service approximately 1% of these homes per annum, which is 115,000 storage unit installations. As part of the company’s growth and investment plans, it will also look be actively looking to build partnerships with all tiers of UK housebuilding firms.