Let's talk about self storage.

We recently just open our 3rd facility. We will be selling boxes and packing/moving supplies. I was just curious if there is a suggestion on how to price items? Is there a typical mark up rate people use? Or any suggestions on how to price our items. We know we won't be able to sell things as cheap as Lowe's or Walmart since they can sell so cheap with buying in huge bulk numbers. I want to make it worth while but not price us out of business either. Any suggestions on mark up rates?

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Desiree Franke
Mission Storage
Lindale TX
(903) 881-2520
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We start by doubling our cost.  We also will call other facilities in the area to see what they are charging, and then adjust our markup to stay where our competitors are.

Big box retailers like Lowes and Walmart are cheaper, but their "small" box is normally a lot smaller than the small book boxes most storage facilities carry.  So look at the dimension of what you are selling compared to them.  Our 1# facility for retail sales, they do over $1000 every month, is next door to Walmart.  We can't explain why they have so many walk-in sales but they do, and our prices are a lot higher than Walmart.

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Sarah Cole
Exec Admin Asst/Audit Coordinator/Marketing
Oakcrest Management, Inc.
Burleson TX
(817) 426-5996
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Thank you for your feedback!

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Desiree Franke
Mission Storage
Lindale TX
(903) 881-2520
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-22-2021 08:48 AM
From: Sarah Cole
Subject: Retail Pricing

We start by doubling our cost.  We also will call other facilities in the area to see what they are charging, and then adjust our markup to stay where our competitors are.

Big box retailers like Lowes and Walmart are cheaper, but their "small" box is normally a lot smaller than the small book boxes most storage facilities carry.  So look at the dimension of what you are selling compared to them.  Our 1# facility for retail sales, they do over $1000 every month, is next door to Walmart.  We can't explain why they have so many walk-in sales but they do, and our prices are a lot higher than Walmart.

------------------------------
Sarah Cole
Exec Admin Asst/Audit Coordinator/Marketing
Oakcrest Management, Inc.
Burleson TX
(817) 426-5996
------------------------------

Thank you!

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Desiree Franke
Mission Storage
Lindale TX
(903) 881-2520
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-22-2021 09:30 AM
From: Mike Gately
Subject: Retail Pricing

A good rule of thumb is retail price is double your cost of the item.

Desiree, we price our retail products for the convenience we are providing (not necessarily based on the competition). Especially post covid customers are looking for a one-stop shopping experience. If you want your merch sales to go up...my recommendation is as follows: 
1. Have a well-stocked neat display setup. 
2. Learn about the customer needs during the rental process. 
3. Walk every customer to the wall and discuss how the merch item benefits them. 

Hope this helps.

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Raheem Amer
SVP - Operations
Devon Self Storage Holdings (US) LLC
Frisco TX
(630) 660-2637
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Thank you for your input!

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Desiree Franke
Mission Storage
Lindale TX
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-22-2021 11:06 AM
From: Raheem Amer
Subject: Retail Pricing

Desiree, we price our retail products for the convenience we are providing (not necessarily based on the competition). Especially post covid customers are looking for a one-stop shopping experience. If you want your merch sales to go up...my recommendation is as follows: 
1. Have a well-stocked neat display setup. 
2. Learn about the customer needs during the rental process. 
3. Walk every customer to the wall and discuss how the merch item benefits them. 

Hope this helps.

------------------------------
Raheem Amer
SVP - Operations
Devon Self Storage Holdings (US) LLC
Frisco TX
(630) 660-2637
------------------------------