eKourier Oct 2010

History Waterloo was converted to Self Storage in 1988 from a complex of various small manufacturers such as Akubra Hats. There were 3 buildings, two 4 levels & one 3 levels (including a basement). It was the original glass factory in the 30’s under the name of Crown Corning which was located here due to the local sand. Spotlight on Waterloo... Site Features The facility is located between the Sydney CBD & the airport on busy Bourke Street. In the past 5 years Kennards have developed the site initially by incorporating the Alexandria Wine facility into the refurbished basement. We have just added 87 wine cellars to bring it to a total of 360 cellars.

plans in the future to go up another 2 floors. We are the only storage facility in the area with 24 hour access. We have had a new office built which gives us great retail exposure to the very busy local roads. The carton sales have increased from $21,000/month to our record of over $30,000 in July. That’s more than 20 pallets of cartons to take to customers cars…phew !!! Our main challenges are to promote & create awareness of the Wine Cellar Basement & to get back the square metres lost during the recent G.F.C. There are 2384 units covering 20,800 sq mtrs with an occupancy of 71% & a monthly income over $500,000. The Team The team - Lisa Hopkinson, Rob Aubrey, Laurie Jones, Brendan Perry & Phil Howe. Phil Howe

Just over two years ago another 2 storey building was added giving Waterloo an additional 450 units all with 24 hour access plus some much needed drive up units. Its occupancy is now 70% & there are

Wine Cellaring Specialist Training “Whilst 5-6 years in the wine

“Having not had much experience with wine storage itself, I came into this training with fewer preconceptions. This training was preparation for something that’s imminent on the horizon for Chatswood, and I personally felt a lack in my understanding about wine generally. So I guess you could also say I felt clueless, and given the amount of knowledge and enthusiasm I came out with, that’s fairly accurate.

industry in various environments built a sound knowledge of wine and wine regions, I was left

with little insight into the critical conditions (temperature, humidity, light and movement) of cellaring wine and why they are important. Our course was designed from the outset to develop in us a strong awareness of the impact of these influences, and why they need to be controlled when cellaring wine. Some exposure to the workings of a winery, the wine itself and a dose of wine knowledge (and let’s not forget the competitive grape stomping) really heightened our enjoyment of our training. The result ant benefit for our relationship with our storers is that whilst they will already have some knowledge of how wine needs to be stored, they may still be looking for a convincing reason to store with us. We are now all better equipped to offer such reasons. The pooled results of the CPAs gave us further weaponry in this respect. The set-up of the training ensured that the whole experience was interesting, informative, relevant and, not least of all, fun. We all got a lot out of it and will benefit from it into the future.” Gordon at Huntingdale

First things first, I came out with a much better knowledge of the Australian wine making industry; I learned what wine regions are where, and the wine is produced there. This will enable me to build a better rapport with my customer through their collection. Secondly, I learned about the wine making process, and the bio-dynamics of wine itself. This will enable me to relate the product I offer in a better way, as to the importance of cellaring conditions and the treatment of wine generally. Thirdly, I got excited about the prospect of having wine storage as part of the portfolio here at Chatswood. This got me to thinking about all the marketing opportunities that we can initiate to help fill-up our cellar.” Jim at Chatswood

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Kennards Kourier October 2010