SHURGARD

The challenge:

Shurgard is the largest self-storage specialist in Europe. It runs a highly profitable business but was confronted a few years ago with significant turnover from its warehouse staff. This represented a serious challenge as staff members were being trained for a full year only to leave a few months later. Furthermore, the organization needed to reassess how to reposition itself in an ultra-competitive market with agile and disruptive players.

What transpired:

The warehouse managers being hired by Shurgard were self-starting entrepreneurs. These were self-assured individuals who didn’t appreciate the diversity of the function and regularly questioned the way things were being done. Born sellers, they disliked the administrative tasks, weren’t always flexible or open to feedback, and focused more readily on their interests rather than taking care of the customer.

What transpired is that clients who come to Shurgard are often facing a crisis: they are moving, facing an urgency or someone has passed away. What these customers need is a sympathetic ear, someone with empathy capable of listening to their needs and taking a load off their mind. This requires outgoing, empathetic individuals with social skills, flexible with a service mindset, open to feedback, to learning and gradually building their other skills.

A crucial insight in the history and DNA of Shurgard, is that the founder - Chuck Barbo began his career as a teacher. In fact, both Chuck and his wife Linda had a passion for education and have dedicated their lives to encouraging young adults to become entrepreneurs. Chucks moto was: “I believe in giving forward” by which he meant honoring the help you’ve received in life by passing that help and kindness on in an ever-widening circle.

The result:

The realization that the essence of Shurgard doesn’t just lie in renting storage space. It is to provide customers and staff physical and mental space. Shurgard’s role is to accompany them in a phase of transition so that they can move on in their life and prepare the future with serenity. This unique vocation elevated the organization’s positioning from simply renting storage space, to a more inspiring promise of self-fulfillment which is reflected in Shurgard’s remarkable training culture. What emerged from this deep dive into the company’s organizational identity was ultimately crystallized in an identity guide and corporate video to align the European organization around an inspiring mission expressing their higher vocation.