We were lucky to catch up with Lisa Storey recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Lisa thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Parents can play a significant role in affecting how our lives and careers turn out – and so we think it’s important to look back and have conversations about what our parents did that affected us positive (or negatively) so that we can learn from the billions of experiences in each generation. What’s something you feel your parents did right that impacted you positively.

I grew up on a farm where I was expected to work hard and alongside my parents, brother, and grandparents. It was the hardest work I’ve ever done but by far the most rewarding. It taught me good work ethic and showed me that even though things may not go as planned, the work must go on. Never give up.

My father was also an entrepreneur and always had his hand in multiple side jobs. My mother was the one who managed the money (although we were poor as most farmers were back then). She was very business savvy.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I moved into my community back in 2005. At the time I needed to store some of my belongings in storage. I had a difficult time finding availability. I had to go several miles before finding one. That was a lightbulb moment for me. I knew there was a definite need for more storage facilities/units. In 2008 I built my first storage facility in the same community where I moved back in 2005. I built in phases, one or two buildings at a time. This spanned through 2011. In 2020 I purchased a large building and converted it into climate control units. Then in 2021 I purchased an existing facility that was in dire need of attention. At this time I have over 200 storage units ranging in size from 5 x 10s to 20 x 20s.

I provide good customer service and that, I believe, sets me apart from other facilities. It’s just myself who runs my business so I answer all the calls. Because of this I have many repeat customers. They know that I value their business.

I also have other businesses including short and long-term rentals. My Air BNB is in my community and my long-term rentals are within 10 miles of me.

I run eBay and Amazon stores as well. My love for thrifting has definitely paid off in this particular business

Overall, I stay very busy with my businesses but I can honestly say that I love every minute of it. The strong work ethic I learned as a child has definitely paid off.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

In December 2018 I had a terrible car wreck. At that time I had a boutique. I had only had it about 9 months when I had my wreck. It had really started doing well. I had a storefront but had not yet started selling online. After my wreck I had to shut my store down because I was only open on weekends and I was the one running my business. I was physically in a terrible place. I purchased an old airport shuttle bus and converted it into a mobile boutique. It worked great. I would go to different vendor events and did very well. Then, in 2020 COVID shut down all vendor events so I ended up selling my bus. I still have some inventory left and sell it on eBay. In fact, my eBay and Amazon stores are “The Carousel Shop” which is my boutique store name. I offer not only my boutique products but mainly vintage items and books.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I believe that being a part of multiple local business groups, city development councils, etc., has helped build a good working relationship with many community leaders. This is key to not only learning new ways of doing things, but also building repertoire with other businesses. We try to help each other out. For example, I am friends with other storage owners. When I am fully occupied I send them to the other facilities and they do the same for me. It’s a win-win. I’ve found that I can’t look at others as competitors but instead as partners.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Www.vinegrovestorage.com
• Other: https://ebay.us/m/i1zKj5 -My eBay store

  www.irvingtonstorage.com

  https://evolve.com/vacation-rentals/508106 My Airbnb