Real estate firm The Ardent Cos. has launched The Place 4 Self Storage investment platform in the United Kingdom. It’s been seeded with three acquisitions in Alton, Petersfield and Swindon, England, according to sources.
Due diligence of additional acquisitions is underway, with a goal of growing the platform to 15 to 20 properties. New locations will be focused on southern markets in England. They’ll comprise at least 25,000 square feet each. They may include incubator office space where appropriate.
Ardent has previously developed more than 3 million square feet of self-storage in the U.S. The company is led by Jonathan Meier, who’s held senior positions at ABC Self Store, Access Self Storage and The Storage Depot, the sources reported.
“The launch of The Place 4 Self Storage reflects our confidence in the long-term fundamentals of the U.K. self-storage sector and our ability to identify scalable opportunities in fragmented markets,” said Ardent CEO Matt Shulman. “By combining disciplined real estate investment with a strong operational platform, we are well-positioned to build a meaningful portfolio in high-quality markets.”
“The Place 4 Self Storage, with its lifestyle-centered brand and focus on customer experience, is designed to reach an underserved corner of the sector, and the success of this approach can be seen in the early trading well above our forecasts,” Meier said. “With the next several sites already in various stages of due diligence, and a further pipeline of potential assets identified, we anticipate swift growth for the business towards our targeted size of circa 15 to 20 locations.”
Founded in 2012, Ardent entered the U.S. self-storage sector in 2019. It has since invested $425 million across 19 properties. It launched Self-Storage Development Fund II last year with a goal to raise $150 million for ground-up projects in high-demand, supply-constrained U.S. markets. It has offices in Atlanta, London and New York as well as Charlotte, North Carolina.
Sources:
BE News, Ardent Launches New UK Self-Storage Platform
Property Week, Ardent Launches UK Self-Storage Platform With Three Acquisitions