We are pleased to announce that our Mini Mall Storage Properties Trust (MMSP Trust) will expand into the United States. The expansion is a continuation of the overall plan to position MMSP Trust to acquire self-storage properties in attractive secondary markets across North America.
Through the fund’s strategic acquisitions in Canada, and extensive market research, the MMSP Trust team has determined the time is right to also focus efforts on the U.S., where similar risk-return opportunities exist.
“Based on our success here in Canada, we feel the time is right to expand our scope to include the U.S. self-storage market. When it comes to geography, we’re agnostic,” says Adam Villard, Chief Executive Officer, MMSP Trust.
MMSP Trust has always had its sights set on the U.S. market.
“We felt it was important as a new fund to first deliver on what we set out to do, which was to generate success here in Canada. Given that success, we can enter the U.S. market with confidence,” Villard says, adding that MMSP Trust will continue to seek out opportunities in Canada.
From inception, the Trust went from $4 million to $458 million in assets under management (AUM), which played an integral part in Avenue Living reaching $3 billion AUM. MMSP Trust has expanded into six provinces so far and amassed over 2 million square feet in storage. “We were able to enter the Canadian market at the perfect time and acquire assets at rates that were favourable to the fund,” Villard says.
“Through leveraging Avenue Living’s Canadian platform and U.S. presence, partnerships and learnings, and expertise, we believe the U.S. to be a desirable market that represents substantial room and opportunity for growth. We’re going to follow the lead of and build on Avenue Living’s successful expansion into the U.S.,” Villard says.
By using Avenue Living’s proprietary approach to market research and extensive knowledge of the U.S. market, MMSP Trust has identified key regions within the United States to target as entry points. These markets exhibit strong storage demographic trends, such as aging population, and a low supply scenario with a favourable square-foot-per-capita metric.
“By emulating how we’ve identified opportunities, minimized risk and effectively entered new markets in Canada, MMSP Trust’s U.S. entry is designed around acquiring anchor assets in markets with similar success profiles that also demonstrate that opportunity for growth. We closely monitor local trends through both in-depth research and the management of close ties to a collection of independent ownership groups,” Villard says.
This commentary and the information contained herein are for educational and informational purposes only and do not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities or related financial instruments. This article may contain forward-looking statements. Readers should refer to information contained on our website at www.avenuelivingam.com for additional information regarding forward-looking statements and certain risks associated with them.