Self-Storage Industry in Zambia: An Analysis of Market Attractiveness

E A S Y S E L F - S T O R A G E L T D
Self-Storage – The Recession Proof
Industry
By Andreas Brolund

Business Administration & Service Management – Service and Innovation
Bachelor Project
CPR# 060989-3451
Hand-in date: 18/05/2016
Supervisor: Oluseyi A. Adeyemi
Pages count: 39
Number of Characters (spaces): 68,705
Number of Characters (no spaces): 57,964
Copenhagen Business School 2016

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Table of Contents
1. Executive Summery .......................................................................................... 4
2. Introduction ...................................................................................................... 5
2.1 Problem Statement ....................................................................................................................................... 6
2.2 Problem Formulation: ................................................................................................................................. 6
Methodology ......................................................................................................................................................... 6
2.3 Theoretical approach ................................................................................................................................... 7
2.4 Structures and Models ................................................................................................................................ 7
2.5 Statistics and Data Collection .................................................................................................................. 8
2.6 Delimitation .................................................................................................................................................... 8
2.6 Critics of Sources ......................................................................................................................................... 8
2.7 Critics of Theories ........................................................................................................................................ 9
3. The Origins of the Self-Storage Industry .......................................................... 9
3.1 Shurgard USA ............................................................................................................................................. 10
3.2 Self-Storage in Southern Africa ............................................................................................................ 10
3.3 Marketing Mix ............................................................................................................................................. 11
3.4 Summery of 2015 UK Self-Storage Industry Survey ..................................................................... 12
3.5 Analysis of key findings .......................................................................................................................... 12
3.6 Product ........................................................................................................................................................... 13
3.61 Type of Storage Facility ...................................................................................................................... 13
3.62 Revenue Centers ..................................................................................................................................... 14
3.7 Place ................................................................................................................................................................ 16
3.72 Land Ownership ...................................................................................................................................... 17
3.8 Promotion ...................................................................................................................................................... 17
3.81 Summery of demand survey findings .............................................................................................. 17
3.82 Self-Storage Demand Drivers - The 4 Ds ..................................................................................... 18
3.9 Market Segmentation ................................................................................................................................ 21
3.91 Self-storage awareness ........................................................................................................................ 22
4. Price ................................................................................................................................................................... 22
4.1 Rental Rates ................................................................................................................................................ 22
4.2 Prices on websites .................................................................................................................................... 23
5. PESTEL ANALYSES – ZAMBIA ............................................................... 23
5.1 Political .......................................................................................................................................................... 23
5.2 Economic Environment ............................................................................................................................ 24
5.23 Regional Economic Comparison ...................................................................................................... 25
5.24 Cost of doing Business in Zambia ................................................................................................... 25
5.3 Social Environment ................................................................................................................................... 26
5.4 Technological Environment .................................................................................................................... 26
5.5 Environment ................................................................................................................................................. 26
5.6 Legal Environment .................................................................................................................................... 27
5.7 Summery – Reasons to Invest in Zambia ........................................................................................... 27
5.8 Financial Incentives to Small Businesses (micro or small enterprises) ................................... 28
6. How Attractive is Self Storage investment in Zambia? ............................... 28
6.1 The Zambian Market ................................................................................................................................. 28
6.2 Porter’s Five Forces ................................................................................................................................... 28
Lusaka Market .................................................................................................................................................... 29

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6.3 Threat of Rivalry ........................................................................................................................................ 29
Benchmark of Competitors ........................................................................................................................... 30
6.4 Locations and Distance of Competition .............................................................................................. 31
6.41 The Big Green Box location and distance .................................................................................... 32
6.42 Distance of Big Green Box ................................................................................................................. 32
6.42 Roma Storage Solution location and distance ............................................................................ 32
6.43 Eureka Storage location and distance ........................................................................................... 33
6.44 Airport location and distance ............................................................................................................ 34
6.5 Threat of New Entrants and Entry Barriers ....................................................................................... 34
6.51 Governments create barriers. ............................................................................................................ 34
6.52 Asset Specificity ...................................................................................................................................... 35
6.6 Threat of Substitutes .................................................................................................................................. 35
6.7 Bargaining Power of the Buyer ............................................................................................................. 35
6.8 Bargaining Power of Suppliers .............................................................................................................. 36
6.9 SWOT Analysis .......................................................................................................................................... 36
7. Market Segmentation ..................................................................................... 37
7.1 Geographic Target Group ........................................................................................................................ 38
7.2 Target Group ................................................................................................................................................ 38
7. Easy Self- Storage Business Plan & Service Design ..................................... 39
8.1 Objectives ..................................................................................................................................................... 39
8.2 Mission ........................................................................................................................................................... 40
8.3 Keys to Success ........................................................................................................................................... 40
8.4 Company Ownership ................................................................................................................................. 40
8.5 Company Locations and Service design ............................................................................................. 40
9. Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 42
10. References/Bibliography ............................................................................... 43
11. Appendix ........................................................................................................ 46
Chart 1: No. of stores by brand .................................................................................................................. 46
Chart 2: Total Population by Province and Region, Zambia, 2012 ............................................. 46

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1. Executive Summery
My project presents the question, “What procedures and challenges must be
overcome in order to successfully set up Easy Self-Storage in the Zambian market?”
The report will use several industry surveys and business models to analyze the
continued success of self-storage in other markets. An investigation into the prospects
of an investment in the Zambian market will then be conducted. It will look in depth
into Zambia in general, and also at the business environment to see if it is an
appropriate place for investment in self-storage industry.
I proceeded to see if the results of market research into the self-storage industry and
the Zambian market were encouraging me to make an investment through a PESTEL
analysis. Data from the industry surveys showed that Easy Self-Storage has a great
chance of being successful in the Zambian market. The research shows that Zambia is
an under developed market for self-storage with only 2 facilities currently operating.
Considering the competitiveness of self-storage industry, I used Porter’s Five Forces
to analyze the self-storage industry in Zambia, and understand the rivalry and barriers
that exist in depth. Once all the elements to competition and the industry were
understood, a Benchmark of the competitors was done, followed by a SWOT analysis
of the Zambian self-storage industry. I then proceed to make a business plan and
derive a competitive advantage in order to have the best chance of acquiring
customers early to bring in vital revenue immediately.
However, I believe Easy Self-Storage should look at the possibility of diversifying
their service offering and add more value through free trailers and free collecting and
deliveries for long-term customers.
Finally, if Easy Self-Storage is successful, profits should be re-invested until the
market in Lusaka is saturated. More stores in one city or country will lead to
economies of scale a strong brand presence.

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2. Introduction
In the last two decades, the self-storage industry has evolved extremely fast. The
United States makes up roughly almost 90 percent of the global market with more
than 50, 000 storage facilities available (Bozarth, 2015). In the early 2000s, the
United States experienced substantial growth as the total number of quantities
doubled from 1 billion square feet in 2000 to over two billion in 2005. Gross revenues
currently are currently above 22 billion dollars, or almost $500,000 per facility
(Bozarth, 2015).
There is a significant demand for self-storage so the market place has huge potential
for entrepreneurs. Small business entrepreneurs own 75 percent of storage companies
(Bozarth, 2015). These people operate just one storage facility highlighting the
potential it offers as a business opportunity. Whether you are a small mom-and-pop in
a small local market, or you run many locations in a very competitive market, the
demand for self-storage is not slowing down any time soon (Bozarth, 2015).
Zambia is a developing country experiencing high levels of economic growth and it is
on the path of becoming an emerging market. Agriculture is also increasing each year
and expected to continue like this leading to opportunities for storage facilities for
grain and cold chain storage facilities for fruit or vegetable storage. Statistics indicate
Zambia has a capacity of slightly above 1,450,000 Mt of which 990,000 Mt is under
the government while the private sector only has 550,000 Mt (Ndambo, 2014 pg. 3).
The government estimate an extra 1 million Mt storage capacity is needed paving way
for investment in this sector (Ndambo, 2014pg. 3). Furthermore, self-storage in
Southern Africa is a largely untapped market. South Africa is the only mature market
for self-storage in Southern Africa, and even they have not fully met the demand that
exists in their market. This highlights the great potential for investment in this sector,
and also the potential huge market share a first mover could gain.

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2.1 Problem Statement
What procedures and challenges must be overcome in order to
successfully set up Easy Self-Storage in the Zambian market?
2.2 Problem Formulation:
My motivation for this project comes from my ambition to start my own Self-storage
business in Zambia, Africa in the very near future. I have decided to approach this as
an entrepreneur starting a brand new self-storage business like I plan on doing.
This report will analyze the growing demand for self-storage solutions globally in
order to highlight the potential the Zambian Market holds and the prospects of an
investment in this market.
The analysis of this problem statement can be broken down into the following four
sub questions:
1. How is self-storage doing in other markets (Part A)?
2. What challenges could be faced in launching a self-storage business in
Zambia (Part B)?
3. What will Easy Self-Storages’ competitive advantage be and how can it be
positioned in the Zambian Market Part C)?
4. What is the Business Plan (Part D)?
Methodology
First I will be investigating part A of the sub questions. In order to understand the
self-storage industry and the service they provide I will analyze the global self-storage
market in order to understand and adequately embrace the Zambian self-storage
market investment opportunities. I will carry out an analysis of the marketing mix
(Jobber, 2010 pg. 301) in European/American markets. This will include the product,
price, promotion, and the prices.
Secondly, will investigate part B of the sub questions. In order understand what the
challenges of launching a business in Zambia are, I will analyze the Zambian Market
as a place for investment in general and any possible synergies self-storage solutions
could identify in the Zambian Economy. Alongside this, I will analyze what
procedures and challenges Easy Self-Storage needs to over come in order to launch a

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business in Zambia. I will carry out an external marketing audit through a PESTLE
analysis (Jobber, 2010 pg. 78)
The third part will focus on part C of the sub questions. In order to answer what the
competitive advantage and positioning should be, I will investigate the strengths and
weaknesses of the product using a SWOT analysis (Jobber, 2010 pg. 46), while also
using porter’s five forces to analyze the rivalry with competitors and thereby
understand the current self-storage solutions available (Porter, M. E, 1998) This
chapter will also analyze the previous chapters, as they will assist me in positioning
the product on the Zambian Market.
Alongside this, I will analysis the competitive landscape and select a target market
through market segmentation (Jobber, 2010 pg. 261). After the target market is
identified, I will select an ideal strategy to use.
Last but not least, I will make a business plan to derive my conclusion from my
analysis. This will detail the directions for Easy Self-Storage to launch in the Zambian
Market.
2.3 Theoretical approach
I will be using several industry reports and industry surveys to look at the current
situation of the Self-storage industry. Data gathered from the industry surveys will
help me analyze: demand drivers, rental rates, length of stay, types of customers,
forms of ownership, other services provided, and their turnover by source. This will
give me an overview of how strong the health of this industry is. Furthermore, I will
use Google maps to try and illustrate the untapped market potential Lusaka offers.
2.4 Structures and Models
I will be utilizing several models to analyze the Zambian Self-storage market. Once
research has been done into the state of the global Self-storage industry, I will analyze
the Zambian Market. The first model that will be used is the PESTLE (Jobber, 2010
pg. 261), analysis (Political, Economical, Socio-Cultural, Technological, Legislative
and Environmental factors), which will help me get an idea of the Zambian business
climate and what it takes to invest in Zambia. Also, Zambia’s expansion growth
opportunities will be enhanced with a PESTLE-analysis.
The region of expansion is the Zambian market. Thus, I will embrace Easy Self-
storage growth opportunities and threats in the Zambian Storage market and its main

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competitors in the market. I will begin this analysis with Porters Five Forces to get a
better idea of the competitive forces and rivalry in the industry (Porter, M. E, 1998).
Thus I will be looking at buyers bargaining power, threat of substitutes, suppliers
barging power, threat of new entrants and finally how all of Porters factors react
together to form competition rivalry. Thus, I will be looking at the demand
conditions, and related & supporting industries of the Zambian market. After the
rivalry of the industry is analyzed, a SWOT model (Strengths, Weakness,
Opportunities, Threats) will summarize the Zambia Self-storage markets possibilities
(Jobber, 2010 pg. 46). Using the information I have harvested from the all the models
I implemented in the report, I will develop a strategy and direction for Easy Self-
storage in terms of how to acquire customers and stand out from competition.
2.5 Statistics and Data Collection
I will primarily be using course literature using various theories and models to help
explain our findings. We will be using Self-Storage Association UK annual survey
2015 and several other self-storage reports to analysis Zambia’s potential. We will be
using the Internet as a source to find information such as articles and annual reports
on the self-storage industry and to help us understand what competitors exist in the
Zambian Market.
2.6 Delimitation
I have chosen the Zambian market and not any other market because it is under
developed and because of the advantages I could use, as my family own some land
there. I believe that Easy Self-storage or any other company in general can
sustainably grow and dominate the market with the right strategy. Thus this is why I
have chosen to focus on how to overcome any challenges in the Zambian Market and
launch Easy Self-storage. The self-storage industry in Zambia is under developed
with only two business currently operating, so as a result, I chose to focus my
research on other mature markets like the UK in an effort to understand more about
the industry.
2.6 Critics of Sources
Web-information always faces the risk of being manipulated and subjective. Thus, I
chose to focus on utilizing the Industry surveys that have a large enough sample of
self-storage operators to ensure fairly accurate results (e.g. Self Storage Association

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UK annual survey). The statistics used in the report mainly came from this
association.
2.7 Critics of Theories
I believe it is necessary to criticize Porter’s Five Forces before implementing them.
The Internet is diminishing the validity of the Porter Five Forces since the Internet is
eroding barriers to entry to any market in general. Globalization and deregulations in
countries is enhancing rivalry, supplier and buyer connections from a global aspect.
Thus, in many markets it is difficult to utilize a Porter Five Forces for analyzing
market attractiveness since the market is so strongly related and interconnected with
other markets, globally.
Secondly, the PESTLE-analysis I am applying is limited to growth and threat
opportunities from a national aspect. Thus, its validity can be questioned in terms of
how applicable it is on specific local areas (e.g. the state Lusaka or Copperbelt) and a
global aspect. The world today is interconnected and for example an economic
opportunity in one nation can be easily diminished by an economic threat in other
countries, e.g. this has been experienced in the financial crisis of 2008.
3. The Origins of the Self-Storage Industry
The self-storage industry begun in the 1970s, as American consumers became
increasingly mobile and a new lifestyle created a new demand for extra or temporary
storage space. People were relocating for employment opportunities or to study and
on top of that, households were becoming more cluttered as electronics and other
mass produced appliances became very affordable (Hamermesh, 2010 pg. 2).
As an alternative to relocating to a bigger house and paying a considerable amount for
full-service relocation or warehousing services, entrepreneurs from the oil industry in
Texas began renting out extra warehouse space directly to customers. Single units
would be rented out through a signed rental agreement similar to an apartment lease.
Customers would also pack and transport their respective goods to/from the storage
facilities themselves (Hamermesh, 2010 pg.2). In contrast to a traditional warehouse,
tenants of each self-storage unit had responsibility for the care, custody, and control

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of their stored goods. The simplicity of this business plan, lead to many entrepreneurs
capitalizing on this business opportunity (Hamermesh, 2010 pg.2).
3.1 Shurgard USA
Charles Bardo, a real estate entrepreneur, founded Shurgard in Seattle in 1972. A
friend of his told him about the self-storage industry down in Texas, and he decided to
try it out in Seattle. They built one that was instantly successful, and they’ve kept
building them ever since. By the end of 1970s, Shurgard had 25 local storage
facilities. They soon expanded to the Midwest (Michigan) and then later the East
Coast and by 1988, they had 100 facilities across the United States (Hamermesh, 2010
pg. 2).
By the 1980s, the self-storage industry had evolved from their tradition single story,
privately owned operations. Branding and management experience became
increasingly important in order to distinguish your business from competition.
Customers now required increased security, stricter access, control gates, more
prevalent video surveillance with digitized backups, motion-sensor lighting, and
extended hours (Hamermesh, 2010 pg.2). Many of these facilities built multi story
units, installed zoned climate control and a retail space where customers could
purchase packing materials and often rental trucks (Hamermesh, 2010 pg.2). Many of
these offerings have become standard now.
By 1990, the U.S. self-storage market had grown to 30,000 facilities (8 million
storage units) and 10 billion in total revenue. However, the industry was and is still
very different, as the top 10 biggest self-storage operators only controlled 18% of the
total market share while the rest was mom & pop enterprises (Hamermesh, 2010
pg.2).
3.2 Self-Storage in Southern Africa
Self-storage is a relatively new type of commercial property in Southern Africa that is
primed for growth due to demographic changes, strong business activity, and growing
investor interest (Wolpe, 2010). South Africa is a perfect example of the potential that
exists.
10 years ago if you wanted to go into the self-storage business in South Africa, it
would have been extremely difficult as it was almost non-existent. Only a few

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agricultural-land owners had built 25 to 50 garages on their plots that were on the
outskirts of the city. Over time they developed these properties in phases as they
generated cash flow, building an average of 300 unites per facility. They enjoyed an
average occupancy of 90 percent and a decent rental income. The customer was
largely unaware of the industry’s existence as almost no promotions or advertising
was used, other than Yellow Pages ads (Wolpe, 2010).
Fast forward 10 years and there are now roughly 70,000 self-storage units in South
Africa, with an average occupancy of 80 percent, meaning 56,000 units are occupied
at any given time (Wolpe, 2010). Even with such high growth in the industry, experts
still say the South African market is under exposed and people are unaware of the
concept (Wolpe, 2010).
3.3 Marketing Mix
A Marketing mix model estimates the impact of various marketing tactics on sales
and then forecasts the impact of future sets of tactics. It is often used to optimize
advertising mix and promotional tactics with respect to sales revenue or profit
(Jobber, 2010 pg. 301).
I have chosen to focus my marketing mix research on the self-storage market in the
UK (United Kingdom), so I will be using results from “the self-storage association
UK annual survey” or SSA UK 2015. The UK has been chosen, as Zambia is a former
British colony and subsequently has a lot more similarities or connection to the
Zambian people compared with the Americans. The global self-storage market
remains very similar worldwide, so the results from the UK survey should not lead to
any or much bias/error, but give a fairly accurate picture of what the market looks
like.
This is the ninth consecutive annual survey carried out by the Self-Storage association
UK (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 5). They, and their members, have extensive experience
valuing self-storage properties both in the UK and Europe, the US and Asia. 2015s
survey had responses from 73 separate companies covering 433 self-storage facilities.
This sample represents 40% of the British self-storage sites in the UK, and over 60%
of total self-storage space making it accurate enough for my research to be based off.
Even though there were slightly less respondents than 2014, the results are similar,
proving the sample size is appropriate (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 5). Furthermore, this years

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report includes a demand survey that will assist me with my strategy in part C of the
sub questions.1
3.4 Summery of 2015 UK Self-Storage Industry Survey
(SSA UK, 2015 pg. 5)
• Operators are more optimistic about the outlook for 2015, with no respondents
reporting an anticipated drop in profitability and nearly 80% expecting
improved profitability.
• Operators in London and South East are the most optimistic.
• Average occupancy for mature stores (those stores open for more than six
years) was broadly flat at 70% (of maximum lettable area) over the last 12
months.
• On all stores in the survey occupancy was circa 70% o current lettable area
and circa 65% on the maximum lettable area.
• The average rental rate for all stores showed an increase over the year of 7.1%
to £21.00 per sq ft per annum. This virtually matches the rental rate as at 31
December 2011, the last reported result before the addition of VAT onto all
self-storage fees. Although the sample group has changed over the survey
years, the sample size ensures the data trends are relevant.
3.5 Analysis of key findings
• Demand for self-storage units is increasing and all operators expect more
business in the next year.
• Urban areas like London or the South East have the best future forecasts. This
could mean there is higher demand in urban areas or it could require further
research the fully understand it.
• Self-Storage sites open for over 3 years have a flat occupancy rate of 70%.
This could be because after approx. 3 years, long-term customers are acquired
so it becomes more stable. Charles Bardo also mentions this point in the
Harvard Business review (Hamermesh, 2010 pg.2), highlighting the need to
open more outlets after 2-3 years of operations.

1 SSA UK (p.g. 5)

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3.6 Product
The five largest operators in the UK manage 29.5% of the self-storage stores (SSA
UK, 2015 pg. 8). 29.5% of the British market is a substantially big amount, as the UK
is the biggest self-storage market in Europe (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 8). This statistic
shows the potential market share that can be gained for first movers or companies
with the right strategy and competitive advantage. If Easy Self-Storage can emulate
companies like Safestore or Big Yellow, it could easily take over the Zambian market.
At the same time, the fact that only 30% (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 8) is taken by the big
players shows there is plenty of room for smaller entrepreneurs to still take a piece of
the market and make decent profits.
3.61 Type of Storage Facility
Container storage is an option many storage operators have been turning to as a low
capital means to enter the industry. Table 5 (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 11) below shows the
percentage of operators that use container storage in the UK.
While container storage is a good option if there are financial barriers of entry into the
industry, the vast majority of operators (78%) (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 11), chose to have
no container storage at all. This indicates that constructing your own facility is a much
better option (in the long-run). Container storage could be perceived as not safe for
storage to some clients. It also makes it difficult to provide a good product mix of
different sized rooms.
However, the market in Zambia is almost undeveloped so people are mostly unaware
the self-storage even exists, so they might not have the same bad perception about it

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in the beginning. It also provides the option of portable storage units that could be
moved into locations of a customer’s choice.
3.62 Revenue Centers
To understand the different revenue centers for self-storage businesses, I will analyze,
“the Turnover by source using figure 39” (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 43). &, “other services
provided” using figure 45 (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 44).
According to Figure 39 above, on average Self-storage accounts for 82% of revenue
followed by insurance (10 %), the office/workshops (5%), and then
packaging/merchandising (4%).

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Archive storage is another source of revenue. Demand for this service is only likely
to increase, as people are moving towards digital storage for new files. The problem is
they still need a solution for old documents that are in hard copies. Such data may not
be actively needed but is kept for possible future use or for record keeping purposes
(stature of limitations).
Climate controlled storage is another service that could be offered for special units,
or if feasible, it could be an integrated feature for every unit. Zambia is a warm
country and during the dry season in October, temperatures can reach 35 degrees or
higher. While normal household goods will hold up pretty well against changes in
temperature, long-term exposures to peak summertime temperatures can damage
woods, laminates, paper, or create an environment suitable for mold and mildew
(PODS, 2016)

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3.7 Place
3.71 Converted warehouse vs Purpose-built Storage (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 11).
This graph represents the number of stores, not the floor space.
Converting a warehouse into self-storage units can save a lot of investment capital. It
is also an important option in developed countries like that UK where urban areas
offer very few options to acquire affordable land due to being in a densely populated
area. Converting old warehouse or office buildings becomes the next best option as
you can usually find some businesses that have gone bankrupt or can’t afford to pay
their lease anymore. Banks are very keen on investment in the self-storage industry
due to the consistent occupancy rates and low turnover cost of each customer. If it
were an investment into renting a house or apartment, there would be repair costs
such as painting, fixing the floor, and possibly pluming costs before each tenant
moved in. With self-storage, all you need is a broom or vacuum cleaner, and the next
customer can use the unit.

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On the other hand, if you look at figure (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 11), it can be seen that
over time the proportion of purpose built stores has risen, with 33% purpose built in
December 2014 and 59% being conversions. The sites that remain are container only
sites, which have also grown over the last 2 years.
3.72 Land Ownership
Figure 2 (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 11) indicates that 78% of stores currently held freehold
or long leasehold. The majority of operators prefer this but they will still consider
leaseholds if long leaseholds are not available or if they can’t afford it. This should
not be problem for Easy Self-Storage, as my family owns the land, unless the location
is not suitable after an analysis into a facility location since convenience is key for
acquiring customers.
3.8 Promotion
In order to understand the best channels for promotion, I will analyze the key findings
from the demand survey (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 22).
3.81 Summery of demand survey findings
(SSA UK, 2015 pg. 6).
• 55% of respondents (62% in 2014) have either limited or no knowledge of the
product.
• Awareness in the South of England, and in London in particular is higher.

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• Only 53% of respondents agreed that self-storage offers a range of unit sizes to
meet people’s needs.
• Only 37% of consumers agreed that self-storage contracts are flexible.
• Only 32% of consumers realized that only they could access their goods in self-
storage, not the store staff.
• Only 60% of the survey group could name a self-storage business in their local
area. Direct visibility to the road is the key driver for site recognition.
• Unprompted brand awareness is poor. 67% of respondents could not name any self-
storage brand. However, for those that could name a brand, Big Yellow’s
name was the most recognized by a significant margin.
• Consumers have limited knowledge of the cost of renting self-storage space with
31% not knowing what the monthly cost of renting a 90 sq. ft. might be and a
further 55% believing that it would be less than the likely actual amount.
They key findings indicate that customer awareness in this industry could be very
challenging. The UK has the most self-storage units in Europe, yet 55% have either
limited or no knowledge about self-storage. This could mean a great deal of resources
is needed to educate the Zambian market about Self-storage.
Also 67% of respondents could not name a brand but Big Yellow storage was by far
the most known (SSA Uk, 2015 pg.6). This means the branding of the business could
be very crucial to success. I may have to change the brand to something that is
appealing visually, as most customers will be acquired from cars in traffic passing my
facility and seeing it, so understanding it clearly is essential.
3.82 Self-Storage Demand Drivers - The 4 Ds
This research is conducted by CBRE Global Research and is based of the pdf report,
“demographic changes drive demand for self-storage space in Asia”

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3.821 Death
Aging populations mean that in the coming years there will be many deaths as it is
natural. During the process of passing on belongings to relatives, these items need to
be stored and catalogued. Self-storage is appropriate solution for such situations and
as deaths increase over time due to high population growth rates, demand for self-
storage is likely to rise (CBRE, 2015 pg 6).
3.822 Divorce
This is an event in life that happens frequently and could lead to demand for self-
storage. In Hong Kong, between the year 2000 and 2013, the annual amount of
divorces increased by 68% (CBRE, 2015 pg. 7) When married couples split up, one
person usually has to move out and this creates demand for self-storage (CBRE, 2015
pg. 7).
3.823 Dislocation
This is the disruption in life someone experiences when various events occur, such as
marriage, job changes, and going to higher education like college. In Hong Kong and
Singapore, the number of marriages is increasing by 79% and 16% between 2000 and
2013 (CBRE, 2015 pg. 8). When a marriage happens, two people merge their lives
together, which usually means they require more space. Education has a similar
effect. As universities and other forms of education become more accessible, students
are travelling to study. In Hong Kong and Singapore, the number students in higher
education and vocational education increased by 168% and 42%, respectively (CBRE,
2015 pg. 8). This is shown in Figure 5: Demand driver – dislocation (CEIC, 2015).

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3.824 Density
This can be described as the process of downsizing. This is when someone moves into
a smaller residence. It could be because children have left the house or simply
because living space is tight as it often is in densely populated urban cities. This
factor fits the Asian demographics well as there is much less space available in Asia
compared to for example, America. In Hong Kong, the average amount of space per
person is only 167 sq. ft. compared to 980 sq. ft. in the US or 402 sq. ft. in the United
Kingdom (CEIC, 2015 pg. 9).
3.825 Business Activity
As new businesses are established and offices expand, the need for archival and
document storage will increase alongside it (CBRE, 2015 pg. 10). The statue of
limitation is a law for forbids persecutors from charging someone with a crime that
was committed more than a specific number of years ago. This is designed to make
sure someone is only convicted with accurate evidence and not something that has
deteriorated over time (FindLaw 2013). For this reason, business records are essential
to proper practice. Generally businesses also just need to store inventory so there is a
natural demand for self-storage. As sales via the Internet increases, demand for self-
storage will also increase. People are using self-storage units as showrooms and for

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easily accessible inventory. It could become a necessity for someone in e-commerce
(CEIC, 2015 pg. 10).
3.9 Market Segmentation
When you analyze Fig 4 –Split of customer by area occupied (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 12),
it is clear that domestic customers account for the majority of self-storage business in
the UK compared to corporate contracts (business). However, the share of
commercial customers has increased from 36% to 42% between 2010 and 2012 (SSA
UK, 2015 pg. 12). After 2012, it has remained relatively flat at 40%. This indicates
that domestic customers and business will require almost the same amount of
marketing.

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3.91 Self-storage awareness
Self-storage operations were asked how they acquire customer and this was their
response (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 27):
• 68% of customers came to know about self-storage by the facility being
directly visible from the road.
• 12% came from outdoor advertising
• 11% form friends or family
Customers were also asked how they found self-storage facilities and
overwhelmingly, they mostly used the Internet to find a self-storage company with
69% saying using Google search was how they did it (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 27). Search
word optimization is defiantly crucial when marketing takes place.
Other people either just knew where a facility was located (25%), asked a friend
(19%), via the phone directories yellow pages (18%), via local newspaper, or through
social media (6%). (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 27).
4. Price
4.1 Rental Rates
On average, the room rates have increased by 7.1% in 2014 to 21.00 pounds per sq. ft.
per year (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 32). This means it has returned to the same levels of

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2011. The reduction in after 2011 was caused by the addition of VAT in October
2012 (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 32). This is positive sign as it is the first time it has
increased since the recent financial crisis shining a positive light on the future of self-
storage.
4.2 Prices on websites
Whether to display prices on websites is widely debated topic. Some people argue
prices are necessary to give the customer choice, convenience and the ability to book
a unit (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 13).
Others argue that customers don’t understand the product well enough so if prices are
displayed, customer will only make their decision based upon rental rates and not the
other relevant features. This is an ongoing debate and only the future will have a
clearer answer (SSA UK, 2015 pg. 13).
5. PESTEL ANALYSES – ZAMBIA
5.1 Political
Zambia is a constitutional democracy with a peaceful, stable multi party environment,
which is anchored on the rule of law with distinct separation of powers between the
executive, legislature and judiciary (ZDA, 2016 pg. 3). The press and the judiciary
system are run independently alongside a strong civil society. These political
characteristics provide a stable environment for investors to conduct business with the

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security and confidence they need. As Zambia has consistently continued on a path of
political freedom and remained peaceful, it has become a relatively predictable
environment for investors to do business in. This has made it easy for agencies like
the Zambia Development Agency to promote broad based investments, trade and
exports.
Previous governments have been very supportive of business as they undertook a
number of reforms that were aimed at improving the investment and business
environment in Zambia. One of the most prominent of these reforms was the Private
Sector Development Programme (PSDP) and strategic Action Initiative for Economic
Development (SAIED), commonly referred to as the Triangle of Hope (ToH). The
extent of how successful this reform has been is still been measured up to today, but
the progress is clear in the progressive state of the economic environment (ZDA,
2008. pg. 4).
5.2 Economic Environment
The economic climate in Zambia has been improving tremendously and continues to
move in this direction. From 1999 to 2008, Zambia’s economy has experienced
positive growth and very stable macroeconomic surroundings. Real gross domestic
product (GDP) has averaged 5.1% per annum between 2001-2007 (ZDA, 2016 pg.
3). Other important macroeconomic detectors such interest rates and inflation has also
gained much ground in the recent years, as their downward trend has increased. In
2008, inflation moved upwards, but this was mostly due to the financial crisis as it
had stabilized since, until China reduced its demand for the metal ore Copper. This
has again affected inflation like in the 2008 recession, but it is already improving, as it
is at 7% now (ZDA, 2016 pg. 5). The rates for borrowing money have also declined
from an average of 54.6% in 2001 to 26.9% in 2008, and no in 2016, it is 20.6%
(ZDA, 2016, pg. 5). Exchange rates have been improving while also been relatively
stable. This stability is really good as it allows a business to predict the future more
accurately. Such stability is directly linked to the implementation of various monetary
policies and fiscal measure at the rights times, improving investor’s confidence in
Zambia (ZDA, 2016 pg. 5).
Zambia is and continues to be a free market economy and pave the way for other
economies. Furthermore, Zambia has become more recognized as one of the most

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liberalized economies, not only in the sub region (Southern Africa), but also in Africa
as a whole. Investors in Zambia are allowed to repatriate 100% of their net profits due
to Zambia having no foreign exchange controls while also being offered fiscal
incentives. This provides a huge motivation to set up a business in Zambia.
Infrastructure in Zambia will also be crucial to a self-storage business been successful
in Zambia as highways will be ideal locations for launching self-storage facilities due
to the advertising to people who passes by. Zambia, while only having fairly
developed infrastructure is improving greatly. The government is committed to
improving the infrastructure in remote areas of the country in order to increase the
potential investment opportunities that can be tapped out with business creation
(ZDA, 2016 pg. 3). From an institutional analysis view, this is a perfect time to add
self-storage solutions to the market.
5.23 Regional Economic Comparison
When you compare Zambia to other countries in the region, you get a better image of
how well Zambia is doing in various economic indices. For example, Zambia claims
to have a good GDP growth rate of 6.2% (ZDA, 2016. Pg. 5), when neighboring
Angola has a rate of 21.1%. Although this shows Zambia to be far less superior to
Angola and a few other countries, Zambia scores relatively well on the ease of doing
business scale in the region. Zambia was ranked at 101 out of 181 countries, only to
be beaten by Botswana and Namibia (in Southern Africa) (ZDA, 2008. pg. 4). This is
encouraging for me as a prospective investor as other countries with higher GDP
growth like Congo and Angola are not easier to operate in, making Zambia a more
stable and attractive market with relatively good GDP growth. To Back this fact up,
Zambia scores 1st
on the Foreign Direct Investment inflow with USD 984 million in
2007 followed by Namibia with USD 797 million showing that investors are picking
Zambia (ZDA, 2016. Pg. 5).
5.24 Cost of doing Business in Zambia
All companies must be registered at the Patents and Companies registration Agency
(PACRA). I would need to register a private company with a minimum nominal
capital amount of 5, 000 Zambian Kwacha, which is approximately DKK 5300.
Alongside that amount it will cost approximately DKK 300 to purchase forms and
register them. A certificate of incorporation and certificate of share capital must be
obtained, and then a company seal will be issued. The process takes approximately 28

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days (Investor’s Guide Handbook, 2010, pg. 24) making it slightly complicated but
nothing too serious as other countries like China take long periods too but still attract
many investors due to the opportunities the market offers.
5.3 Social Environment
Zambia has a population of 15.4 million people. Roughly 70% of the population is
fairly educated as literacy levels are at 70% (ZDA, 2016, pg. 6). This supplies a labor
face that can be trained relatively easy. However, Zambians generally lack the
entrepreneurship spirit vital for people to develop their own businesses. This is due to
previous policies that encouraged people to train for informal employment.
HIV/AIDS is also recognized as problem affecting development in Zambia. The
working segment of the economy affected leading to lower economic productivity.
This could also affect the target group for sales of storage solutions. On a positive
note, the infection rate has reduced due to intensified efforts from the government and
other partners addressing HIV/AIDS.
Generally, Zambians are popularly known for their hospitality that is exhibited to
foreigners who visit the country either as tourists or as investors.
5.4 Technological Environment
Zambia, although developing, has not reached a satisfactory technological level. ICT
technology and skills development programs are expensive, making them inaccessible
to most Zambians. Rural areas are affected on a higher scale as they lack ICT tools
and services. Looking towards the future, Zambia has installed optic fiber networks
across the country in an effort to develop accessibility and the cost of information
through the Internet. The Zambia Development Agency also strives to strenuously
promote technological investments in other sectors such as health, Manufacturing and
Agriculture (ZDA, 2016 pg.7).
5.5 Environment
Any investor in Zambia must be aware of the Environment Protection and Pollution
Control Act that provides guidelines that investors must be aware of. This is
important and there have been a growing number of projects that have been rejected
by the Environment council due to the impact these projects posed on the
environment (ZDA, 2016. Pg.7). This could be a huge opportunity for Easy Self-
Storage depending on how I position them in the Zambian Market.

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5.6 Legal Environment
In order to start a business in Zambia, one must be aware of the following laws and
acts (ZDA, 2016 pg.8):
• Income Tax Act
• VAT Act
• Customs and Exercise Act
• Immigration and Deportation Act
• Citizen Economic Empowerment Act
• Competition Act and other legislation
The Zambia Development Agency works towards the harmonization of all these laws
in order to promote and facilitate trade and investment as best as possible without
hindrances.
5.7 Summery – Reasons to Invest in Zambia
(Investors Guide Handbook, 2010. Pg.9)
• An abundance of natural resources and manpower
• Political stability since attaining independence in 1964
• Abolition of controls on: prices, interest rates, foreign exchange rates, free
repatriation of debt repayments
• Guarantees and security to investors with legislated rights to full and market
value compensation
• Duty Free Access to regional, wider African and the USA markets under
SADC, COMESA/FTA and AGOA (African Growth and Opportunity Act)
respectively
• Banking, Financial, Legal and Insurance services of international standard
• Double taxation Agreements with a number of European, North American,
African and Asian countries
• Good place to work and live – sub-tropical climate and vegetation with plenty
of water. Friendly people, mostly English speaking, high literacy rate and
educational establishments to University level. Strong religious values. Open-
air lifestyle with nature reserves, game parks, rivers, lakes and waterfalls.

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• Thriving Private Sector – Government has successfully privatised most of the
previously state owned enterprises, thus encouraging an entrepreneurial
culture.
5.8 Financial Incentives to Small Businesses (micro or small enterprises)
For an enterprise in an urban area the income shall be exempt from tax for the first
three (3) years.
For an enterprise in a rural area the income shall be exempt from tax for the first five
(5) years (Investors Guide Handbook, 2010. Pg.9).
6. How Attractive is Self Storage investment in Zambia?
I concluded from the general outlook of the self-storage industry in the world and
more specifically in Africa, there is great potential for Easy Self-Storage in Zambia.
However, this doesn’t confirm that its primary service of self-storage is attractive to
Zambian consumers. In order to analyze if Self-Storage services are in growing in
Zambia, further analysis is needed. I would have used the Boston Consulting Group
matrix. However, there are only two self-storage firms currently operating in the
Zambian market. This clearly shows the industry is still in the introduction phase of
the product life cycle curve. Instead, I will conduct a SWOT analysis; use Porter’s
Five Forces, and then create a strategy for Zambia.
6.1 The Zambian Market
By analyzing the Zambian Self-Storage market, I will be able to determine what areas
and businesses to target in various regions of the capital city, Lusaka. This is relevant
as customers usually come from a 4-mile radius (Hamermesh, 2010, pg.2) so a target
group could save money being wasted on the wrong advertising channels. Other
companies may also target different segments of the market so this will help me
determine whether to compete or chose another direction.
6.2 Porter’s Five Forces
Michael Port created this framework that models an industry as being influenced by
five forces (Porter, M.E. 1998). This framework is good for developing an edge over
competition and understanding the industry you are in better.

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The Zambian self-storage market currently has two players, with a third set to open
soon. These players are Roma Storage Solution & The Big Green Box, and the soon
to be opened facility is called Eureka Storage.
Company Roma Storage
Solution
The Big Green
Box
Eureka Storage
Type Self-storage Onsite & offsite
self-storage
containers
Self-storage
Location Roma (close to
central Lusaka)
Ibex Hill (central
east Lusaka)
Kafue Road (South
west Lusaka)
Lusaka Market
Both Roma Storage Solution and The Big Green Box are established self-storage
facilities in Lusaka, Zambia. While Roma Storage Solution is a tradition American
style facility with units outside, The Big Green Box is very flexible and provides
solutions catered to your needs, so they both have something to offer the market. In
order to understand what their competitive advantages are, I will apply Porter’s Five
Forces to these 2 companies, as they represent the industry. Eureka storage has no
information available at this point in time as they are not open yet, so I will only
include them in any facility location analysis of Lusaka.
6.3 Threat of Rivalry
If perfect competition were applied, competition between rival firms, would lead to
zero profit, as the price would drop, as they would be price takers. However, firms
strive to create a competitive advantage over their competition (Porter, M.E, 1998).
Rivalry can be measured through industry concentration (Porter, M.E. 1998). There
are currently only two self-storage firms operating in Lusaka. This means there is a
concentrated ratio. A high concentration ratio means that only a few firms hold a high
concentration of the market share, similar to a monopoly. This indicates that the
competitive landscape is low (Porter, M.E. 1998). Lusaka is a low-rivalry market but,
a maverick firm seeking a competitive advantage can displace the otherwise

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disciplined market (Porter, M.E. 1998). However, if this happened, rivalry would
intensify.
There are only two firms right now so it can be safely said that Lusaka’s market is
right at the beginning of the product life cycle. It is nowhere near saturation meaning,
technically there should be enough market share all players in the market, including
the addition of Easy Self-Storage. However, if the market growth is very slow, this
will cause firms to fight for competition.
Location and convenience is crucial for acquiring customers and keeping them in the
self-storage industry. As discussed earlier, 68% of operators say, customers know
about them by passing the facility on the highway (SSA UK 2015, pg.27). Currently,
Roma Storage and The Big Green Box are on separate side of Lusaka so their
customers are most likely based off convenience. They products are also different as
Roma Storage is a typical self-storage facility, while The Big Green Box is
specialized in container self-storage. As the level of product differentiation is fairly
high, rivalry intensity is therefore low (Porter, M.E. 1998). Easy Self-Storage must
either decide on how to differentiate itself if possible, build typical self-storage,
containers, or offer both solutions.
Benchmark of Competitors
FEATURES ROMA STORAGE
SOLUTION
BIG GREEN BOX
Self-storage YES NO
Container Self-storage NO YES
Insurance included YES NO
Insurance separate NO YES
Rental Period 1 MONTH 1 MONTH
Flexible space options YES YES
Heat Resistant roof YES SOME UNITS
Weather resistant YES YES
Fire Resistant NO YES
Fire extinguishing
equipment
YES YES
Shelves NO YES

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Electric Fence YES YES
Laser beams YES YES
Multiple alarms YES YES
CCTV onsite YES YES
CCTV at armed response
HQ.
No Information YES
Night time guards YES YES
Both firms offer state of the art security systems so I don’t think that will play any
role in customers deciding which facility to use. The Zambian market is extremely
unsaturated and the Zambian market is unaware of the product. Research in European
markets tends to indicate that container self-storage rental rates are lower due a
perceived lower quality risk. However, in Zambia, The Big Green Box provides the
same services at Roma Storage, while also offering other storage solutions as they can
transport the container to a site of your choice. They also offer renting out just empty
space for bulk storage. I would say that without looking at any financial figures, The
Big Green Box seems to have the competitive advantage in the Lusaka market.
6.4 Locations and Distance of Competition
I have used Google maps as tool to show the location of each self-storage business in
Lusaka, and also to illustrate the location where I would like to set up Easy Self-
Storage. Due to the fact that my intended location (family home in Zambia) is not
searchable with its address on Google Maps, I chosen the Islamic Education Trust of
Zambia as point of reference. This is right across the road from the intended facility
location. It should not be taken as the literal point for Easy Self-Storage, but just a
means to an end to get the right location on Google maps.

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6.41 The Big Green Box location and distance
6.42 Distance of Big Green Box
The distance between the Easy Self-Storage site (Islamic Educational Trust of
Zambia), and The Big Green Box (Ibex Hill) is 11.7 Kilometers (km). This is a long
distance and as convenience is key most of the time, this should mean little or no
rivalry between Easy Self-Storage and The big Green Box.
6.42 Roma Storage Solution location and distance
The distance between the Easy Self-Storage site (Islamic Educational Trust of
Zambia), and Roma Storage Solution is 14.3 km. This is even further away from Easy

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Self-Storage compared to The Big Green Box. This will mean a low rivalry is most
likely. Roma is also very densely populated so Roma Storage solution most likely has
enough customers already.
6.43 Eureka Storage location and distance
Eureka Storage (Eureka Camping Park) is 28.8 km away from the proposed Easy
Self-Storage site. This is on the other side of Lusaka so it should not lead to any
rivalry.
I deliberately increased the image of the Eureka Storage distance to illustrate how
close the airport is to Easy Self-Storage. This is further illustrated in the next image.

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6.44 Airport location and distance
Easy Self-Storage would easily be the most convenient self-storage facility within the
reach of the airport. This could potentially provide a competitive advantage if a
strategy is developed to cater to passengers who need to leave their belongings behind
temporarily before they travel and collect them when they return, or just for cargo
going to or from the airport that needs to be stored.
6.5 Threat of New Entrants and Entry Barriers
It is not only competitors that pose a threat to firms in an industry; the possibility that
new firms may enter the industry also affects competition (Porter, M.E. 1998).
Although no figures can be obtained from Roma Storage Solution or the Big Green
Box, there is no doubt they are making decent profits. Eureka Storage is opening, as
you would expect additional firms to enter the market and take advantage of the high
profit levels. Profits are likely to only decrease when saturation levels have been
reached, but that won’t be for a long time.
6.51 Governments create barriers.
There are very few regulations for the Self-Storage industry and Zambia actually has
a shortage of storage, especially for harvested crops (grain). The government

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estimates an extra 1 million Mt storage capacity is needed paving way for investment
in this sector (Ndambo, N. 2014 pg.3).
6.52 Asset Specificity
This can stop a firm from entering an industry but in this case, the main asset needed
to set up a Self-Storage firm is capital. Globally, investors are interested in self-
storage so obtaining capital is possible if you have the right business plan.
Threat of New Entrants = HIGH
6.6 Threat of Substitutes
Porter describes a substitute as a product from another industry. This kind of threat
exists when demand is affected by the price change of a substitute product. Until now,
the Self-Storage industry is regarded as an absolute thing. This means there is no
substitute for storage. Simply looking at the economic past and future of self-storage
can show this. When most companies collapsed during the recent financial crisis, self-
storage had a slight fall in demand; it never experienced what most other industries
did. It has since been label a recession proof business.
Threat of Substitutes = low
6.7 Bargaining Power of the Buyer
The power of buyers is measured by the impact that customers have on an industry. If
there were a monopsony (one buyer in an industry), this buyer would set the price
(Porter, M.E. 1998). In reality, this doesn’t exist very often. Currently in Lusaka, only
two firms are operating while such a large population could have a need for a storage
solution. This means the buyers have a moderate amount of power. However, there
are very few firms, so buyers have only a few options to pick from. This will mostly
likely change over time as people see the investment potential in Self-Storage.
Internet Marketing also creates a more comparable commodity, increasing a
customer’s price awareness, negotiating knowledge and power (Steimle, J, 2013) In
other words; many customers see little difference between extra spaces. “It’s just a
big box with a door to put your stuff in” (Steimle, J, 2013). Aside from security, the
competing factor is price.
Threat of Bargaining Power from Buyers = MID

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6.8 Bargaining Power of Suppliers
In an industry, a supplier provides raw materials. If a supplier is powerful, they can
exercise their influence by selling raw materials at a higher price (Porter, M.E. 1998).
In this case, storage space is what is being supplied. Currently there are only two
suppliers operating so they have a considerable amount of power but this will reduce
of time due to low barriers of entry into the industry.
Threat of Bargaining power from Suppliers = LOW-MID
6.9 SWOT Analysis
Strength • There is no substitute for Self-
Storage.
• Highly profitable with good
revenue.
• Untapped market with only 2-3
players.
• High investor interest
• Low barriers to entry
Weaknesses • High capital needed to construct a
new facility.
Opportunities • My family owns the land I will
use so it will not be a cost.
• Growth Rates - Roma Storage &
Big Green Box are not on a
highway; Easy Self-Storage will
be on a highway. 68% of traffic
comes from here (SSA UK).
• Supplier power is higher in
Zambia as there are very few
options –higher prices.
• Venture Capital - Funding should
be possible to organize. as banks
want to invest in self-storage due

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to high returns.
Threats • New Entrants so competition will
increase
• Tax changes
• Cash flow if loans are taken
• Government Regulations
changing.
7. Market Segmentation
Market segmentation can lead to several advantages. By isolating a specific market
segment that has similar requirements, you can design a marketing mix package that
would cater for that segment’s needs (Jobber, 2010 pg. 261). Furthermore, by
understanding different segments, you can foresee some opportunities and threats in
advance as some segments can be used as gateways into others.
Easy Self-Storage will start in Lusaka, but in order to have the right strategy for Easy
Self-Storage to penetrate the Zambian market, an analysis of the Zambian geography
and population must be done. This will provide a path for potential future growth.
This will be done through market segmentation. The following data used is from both
the 2008 or 2012 labor Force surveys by the International Labor Organization.
Zambia geographically is divided into 9 provinces with an estimated population of
15, 365, 719 (ILO, 2012, pg.8). Out of the working age population (15 years and
above) only 5, 845, 250 were in the labour force (economically active) while 1, 991,
788 were inactive. The males had higher labour force participation 80% than females
69.5% (ILO, 2012, pg.8).
With regards to employment, the informal sector accounted 83.4% of the total
employed. In rural areas, informal sector employment accounted for 94.2 percent
compared to 63.9 percent in the urban areas (ILO, 2012, pg.8). This could be
attributed to agriculture, which is the main economic activity in the rural areas. The
majority of the employed persons were in the group 15-29 which accounted for 48%
of the total employed (ILO, 2012, pg.8).

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The monthly national average wage in 2008 was estimated at K723, 468 with males
earning average K819,200 compared to K570, 463 for females – Transportation and
storage industry reported the highest average earning of 2.6 million kwacha followed
by financial and insurance activities with 2.1 million kwacha. Agriculture and mining
industry recorded the lowest monthly earnings with K419, 211 and K744, 540
respectively (ILO, 2008, pg. 6).
The majority of all paid workers in the country (52 percent) earned less than 270, 000
while 13 percent-earned K1, 000,000 or over. The rest earned between K270, 000 and
K1, 000, 000 (ILO, 2008, pg.9).
7.1 Geographic Target Group
In order to have the right target group with the regions in Zambia, the population size
and distribution of each of the 9 provinces must be analyzed alongside the percentage
distribution of selected age groups.
Table 22
from the 2012 Labour force survey shows that the largest population is in the
Copperbelt and Lusaka with 17.3 and 15.3 percent, respectively. This is also very
strategic for the self-storage as the majority of economic activity in Zambia happens
in Lusaka and the Copperbelt, so they are naturally the most developed and populated
cities, setting the trends for the rest. Eastern, Northern and Southern Provinces were
the second most populated provinces, at 13 percent each.
In conclusion, the regional segmentation for both soft drinks and beer will include
Lusaka and the Copperbelt as the main targets due to the nature of their large
populations and how urbanized they are. Central, Southern and Northern provinces
will follow after them as their populations are close to that of Lusaka and the
Copperbelt. Western, North Western, Luapula and Eastern province will not be target
yet.
7.2 Target Group
Based on an analysis of the population and geography of Zambia, the ideal target
group for Easy Self-Storage will be 15 – 64 years as the vast majority of Zambian
people fit into this age range. This does not rule out people older than 64 years old but

2 Apendix 2

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it means that the marketing strategy will be directed towards the younger part of the
population (ILO, 2008, pg.4).
The advantage of such a young target group is they directly fit into the working class
of the Zambian population. In theory this means they have a higher disposable
income. Another consideration about the disposable income is that that Zambia has a
large informal work sector. The government does not account for the majority of the
money earned in the informal sector, leading to a lot of black money circulating. This
means there may be a larger than expected market potential for self-storage.
From a geographical point of view, self-storage should primarily be targeted to
penetrate Lusaka and the Copperbelt as these are the most populated provinces.
Lusaka and the Copperbelt is also where most trends are set in Zambia so before
expanding into the central and southern province, Easy Self-Storage must have a large
presence in Lusaka and the Copperbelt.
7. Easy Self- Storage Business Plan & Service Design
This Self-Storage business plan describes a proposed self-storage facility to be
established in the eastern part of Lusaka, Zambia. This will not involve purchasing
any land as it is already owned by my family, but will require the construction of a
brand new facility by the edge of the Great East Road highway. The cost of the
project has not yet been calculated, as I have not met any contractors yet to survey
and access the potential the land we plan on developing. This will be done when I
return to Zambia later this year. Based on current and projected strong demand for
self-storage units globally, rental revenue is projected to rapidly grow and economic
activity also increases.
8.1 Objectives
To take advantage of the global strong demand in the self-storage industry to achieve
a major presence in Lusaka followed by the Copperbelt. My goal is to dominate the
eastern part of Lusaka, which has various house development projects going on and
new shopping malls being constructed. I also plan to set up working relations with
Lusaka International Airport in an effort to provide Self-Storage solutions to

Andreas Brolund
CPR 060989-3451
40
passengers and for cargo, maybe exclusively if possible. As land is not a cost for me, I
hope these savings can be passed down to the customer through lower prices in order
to penetrate the market aggressively.
8.2 Mission
The mission is to sustainably serve the Zambian community’s local residential and
commercial storage and moving needs.
8.3 Keys to Success
The keys to success in the self-storage industry are:
1. To provide dry, secure, and clean facilities with convenient access.
2. To have good connections in the moving industry to direct customer
needing temporary storage space.
3. To be able to adapt as storage and market needs change.
8.4 Company Ownership
The company will be incorporated as a Private Company limited by shares. Three
individuals will own it from my family and possibly an investor if an opportunity
arises. The three individuals will be: Andreas Brolund, Charity Brolund, and Jan
Brolund. Charity Brolund & Jan Brolund would own 50% together, while Andreas
Brolund would own 50% of Easy Self-Storage.
8.5 Company Locations and Service design
Easy Self-Storage will be located in the Waterfalls area of Lusaka East, opposite the
Islamic Educational Trust on the Great East road highway.

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The Google maps image above indicates the intended location along the highway.
Other services offered will include:
• State of the art security systems and all necessary equipment to protect goods
from extreme weather conditions will be installed.
• Free trailers will be provided to add extra value to the service Easy Self-
storage provides.
• Archive Storage.
• Moving equipment like boxes will be sold.
• Future plan is to offer free or cheap transportation of storage goods to
customers who pay for a long period of renting. An example could be, free
collecting of goods to customers who rent for longer that 3 months, (within a 4
mile distance).
Advertising and promotion will rely heavily on ads newspapers, yellow page ads, and
a strong presence online via a website and social media.
Easy Self-
Storage
location

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CPR 060989-3451
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9. Conclusion
Easy Self-storage has a great chance to launch a self-storage facility in the Waterfalls
district of Lusaka East, Zambia. Self-Storage is an absolute thing, which means it has
no substitute. This can been seen by the industries’ impressive economic history and
it’s exciting projected future growth. The procedure is to simply register a company at
PACRA in Zambia for approximately DKK 500, and Easy Self-storage could be up
and running in 28 days. Alongside this, Lusaka Planning & Permission must approve
the site selected for the facility before any construction may begin. These are all
procedures that are standard practice and shouldn’t be a problem.
The reason Easy Self-storage will be able to overcome any challenges to gain access
to it’s target group is simply because the self-storage market is currently under
developed in Zambia which a huge potential for growth. This service will add value to
customers in any decent location in Zambia right now. Even the Government is
calling for private investment into this sector to bridge the current gap in supply.
Should any challenges come up that threaten the success of Easy Self-storage, there is
a versatile business model to ensure a competitive advantage does exist if competition
does come up. The first advantage would be the added service of free trailers to
deliver their goods to Self-Storage units. The second would be developing a free
collection and deliver service for long-term paying customers. This should potentially
increase Easy Self-storage’s market share in Lusaka. Savings from not paying or
leasing land shall also be used to competitively price our Self-Storage units. A lower
price will aggressively penetrate the market in order to start gaining revenue
immediately. This could be crucial if any bank loans or venture capital is raised.
Easy Self-storage will also strive to act sustainably and be conscious of the
environmentally. Solar panels will be used for to insure security systems are online
100% of the time as Zambia’s electrical supplier (ZESCO), has regular power
outages. This will also be used to strengthen our brand and make Easy Self-storage
stand out among competitors. All in all, Easy Self-storage stands to add value to the
population of Lusaka, so they should be able to overcome any challenges and enter
the Zambian self-storage market. They also have the chance to develop the service
offering further and expand locally to achieve economies of scale.

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10. References/Bibliography
Bozarth, Kendra (2015). The Growth of Self Storage: Market for improved
visibility. (Online) www.storedge.com Available at:
https://www.storedge.com/the-growth-of-self-storage-market-for-improved-
visibility (Accessed 16/05/2016).

(SSA UK, 2015)
Cushman & Wakefield, (2015). The Self-Storage Association Annual Survey. 9th
ed. (pdf) London: Self Storage Association UK. Available at:
http://www.ssauk.com/wp-content/pubs/SSAUKAnnualSurvey2015.pdf
(Accessed at 28/04/2016) (SSA UK, 2015)

FindLaw, (2015). Time limits for charges: Criminal Statutes of Limitations. 1st ed.
(pdf) London: UK & Europe office. Available at:
http://files.findlaw.com/pdf/criminal/criminal.findlaw.com_criminal-law-
basics_time-limits-for-charges-state-criminal-statutes-of-limitations.pdf
(Accessed 16/05/2016)

Hamermesh, R. (2010). Shurgard Self-Storage: Expansion to Europe. 1st ed. (pdf)
Hardvard: Harvard Business Review. Available at:
https://hbr.org/product/shurgard-self-storage-expansion-to-europe/804112-
PDF-ENG (Accessed at 05/05/2016)

ILO, (2008). Labor Force Survey 2008. 1st ed. (pdf) Lusaka: International Labor
Organization. Available at: http://www.zamstats.gov.zm/surveys/labor.php
(Accessed at 12/05/16)

ILO, (2012). Labor Force Survey 2012. 1st ed. (pdf) Lusaka: International Labor
Organization. Available at: http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---
ed_emp/---ed_emp_msu/documents/genericdocument/wcms_231731.pdf

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Investors’ Guide, (2010). Investor’s Guide Handbook: Reasons to invest in
Zambia. 4th ed. (pdf) Lusaka: Zambia Development Agency. Available at:
https://www.scribd.com/doc/61874408/Investor-Guide-Handbook-Sept-2010

Jobber, D. (2010). Principles and Practice of Marketing. 6th edition. New York:
McGraw-Hill Companies, 301

Ndambo, N. (2014). Investment Opportunities In Zambia’s Agriculture Sector.
1st(pdf) Lusaka: Zambia National Farmers Union Available at:
http://photos.state.gov/libraries/zambia/231771/PDFs/ZambiaNationalFarme
rsUnionInvestmentOpportunities.pdf (Accessed 17/05/2016)

PODS (2015). Climate Controlled Storage (Online)www.pods.com Available at:
http://www.pods.com/Storage/Storage-Facilities/Climate-Controlled.aspx
(Accessed 14/05/2016)

Porter, M. E. (1998) Competitive Strategy, New York: Free Press, 4.

Roma Storage (2016) Roma Storage Solution (online) Available at:
https://www.facebook.com/Roma-Storage-Solution-
173603726182579/?fref=ts (Accessed at 17/05/16)

Steimle, J (2013). SecureCare: Five Forces & Internet Marketing in the Self-
Storage Industry. (Online)www.fulloccupancy.com Available at:
http://www.fulloccupancy.com/blog/industry-insights/five-forces-internet-
marketing-in-the-self-storage-industry.html (Accessed at 12/05/2016)

The Big Green Box (2016). The Big Green Box (online) Available at:
http://www.thebiggreenboxzambia.com/ (Accessed at 05/05/2016)

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ZDA, (2016). Zambia Development Agency: Transforming Business for the
benefit of Zambians. 2nd ed. (pdf) Lusaka: Zambia development Agency. Available
at: http://www.zda.org.zm/?q=download/file/fid/193 (Accessed at 10/05/16)

ZDA, (2009). Zambia Development Agency Act: 2009 Amendment. 1st ed. (pdf)
Lusaka: Zambia development Agency. Available at:
http://www.zambialii.org/files/zm/legislation/act/2009/5/zdaa2009316.pdf

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11. Appendix
Chart 1: No. of stores by brand

Chart 2: Total Population by Province and Region, Zambia, 2012

Self-Storage Industry in Zambia: An Analysis of Market Attractiveness

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