The growth of Self storage

Elandsfontein a town that came to be during the early days of the gold rush and still home to the worlds largest gold refinerey. But gold was not the only commodity that made Elandsfontein and Germiston the vibrant growth points they became.

South African Airways had originally made Durban their home but by mid July 1935 they came to realise that Johannesburg and its neighbouring cities were where the hub of economic activity lay and moved their headquarters to Rand Airport in Germiston. Rand Airport was known as the busiest airport in Africa.

Of course all of this activity brought with it an influx of citizenry and a growth in the economy of Germiston and surrounding areas such as Elandsfontein. General trade increased dramatically as did the population, this no doubt led to an increase in the need for housing and storage space.

Storage would have been in the form of warehouses and would have been aimed at large scale manufacture and also the import or export business. As time progressed individuals and the small business or manufacturers would also begin needing storage space. Self storage on the East rand was the obvious solution.

The concept of self-storage was born and implemented. Small businessmen could manufacture items and store them for future use at a lower cost than a large warehouse that stood half empty most of the time.

Another individual, and there a number of women who might lay claim to the idea, saw the benefits of having somewhere to store their beongings, and keeping the house clutter free without getting rid of anything. A win-win situation.

And so with the evolution of the economy and the advent of smaller living spaces, townhouses and apartments, the greater East Rand and Elandsfontein became home to a number of self storage facilities, chiefly because of it's proximity to what is now known as OR Tambo international airport.