East End firm puts recession into storage’
A SELF-storage firm set up in East London by an accountant just as the recession struck is bucking the downturn and is set to reach its first �1 million turnover in the next 12 months. The firm, Attic Self Storage, has built up a list of 190 regular cust
A SELF-storage firm set up in East London by an accountant just as the recession struck is bucking the downturn and is set to reach its first �1 million turnover in the next 12 months.
The firm, Attic Self Storage, has built up a list of 190 regular customers with its 30,000sq ft of lettable space in the private and commercial markets.
Yet the recession isn’t stopping it expanding its operation in a former printworks in Bow overlooking the 2012 Olympic Park.
Attic was set up by Chartered accountant Frederic de Ryckman de Betz on the site of Dudley Printers, just off Wick Lane, which had been vacant and derelict nearly five years.
“I’ve always has the ambition to run my own business,” said Frederic. “Despite setting up just before the downturn, we’ve managed to establish a successful business that is continuing to grow.”
Since its launch, Frederic and his small staff of three have driven the business from start up’ to profit, filling the initial 20,000sq ft of space in 300 rooms.
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The firm has now completed the second phase of its expansion, fitting out another 10,000sq ft which has added 157 more storage rooms, as well as a 6,000sq ft trade counter which has also been sub-let, all funded by a �520,000 loan from the Government’s �1.3 billion Enterprise Finance Guarantee which lets small firms with a turnover under �25m get their hands on the capital they need to grow.
