De-stress your holidays? Solana Beach Storage has a solution

The holidays come in rapid succession this time of the year, and most of people enjoy breaking out the decorations and adding a little festivity to the season. But sometimes that trip to the garage can leave you scratching your head – like where did you store that special set of holiday place settings? Or who put the big tabletop turkey in with the Halloween costumes? (Oops, maybe that was you.) There are simple ways to get more organized, and Solana Beach Storage has some strategies for holiday decorators to take the stress out of the season.

Number one? Store it. According to Ellen Wayne, marketing manager of Solana Beach Storage, organizing and storing items helps take stress out of the holidays. “Decorations can be bulky and large,” she says. “They can be put into a storage room and out of your garage. You can also store your holiday table settings like plates, napkins, tablecloths, special cutlery and platters. Get all of that out of your kitchen. You may have special holiday linens for your guest beds or your children’s beds, or special winter clothing and equipment for your holiday trips. Put all of it in our storage room, labeled with special color-coded bins or labels. So that the moment you walk into your storage room, it is very organized and you can visually see what you have. We also provide free shelving in your storage room if you would like to create walkable aisles as well.”

Still, carting all your stuff to a storage facility can be a hassle, right? Well, not so much if you go to Solana Beach Storage. They really get in the spirit of things, Wayne says. “We have the word JOY proudly displayed on our front entrance doors for a reason. We strive to increase joy and reduce all stress for our customers the moment they pull up to our facility.”

The helpful staff at Solana Beach Storage

(Courtesy)

How do they do it? Well, first, they have a greeter at the front counter who signs in customers with a smile and hands them a cold water bottle. Then, customers are offered coffee, tea and a homemade chocolate chip cookie and chocolate candy. “We are happy to help our customers in any way while they visit their storage room,” says Wayne. “That includes helping customers unload their car or lifting and loading things out of their storage room.” They also pipe in holiday music in all the hallways and provide bright lighting everywhere to make the visit pleasant and festive.

“Our customers tell us they love to store their holiday items primarily to free up their living space,” Wayne said. “They want to pull their car in their garages instead of filling their garage with holiday items. Because of our two very convenient locations -- in the heart of Solana Beach and right off the 5 freeway at Sea World Drive -- it makes it easy to swing by and load up the car with items, and to even make a couple of trips over the course of a few weeks. If the guests are not coming until the end of December, then you can swing in to pick up the extra linens and holiday towels right before they come. Then you can bring them back as soon as they leave.”

At this point, you may still be thinking that all storage companies are essentially the same. But that is not the case. Several things make Solana Beach Storage stand out from its competition.

First, it has the largest staff of any other storage facility in the U.S. Second, they’re a solar-powered facility, which means they always have bright LED lights in the hallways and storage rooms to provide a better environment. Third, they don’t just offer a free truck, they offer a helper to go with it to carry or load the heavy stuff. And fourth, their office hours are identical to their business hours. That means customers are never alone in the facility – ever.

So if you’re still feeling a little overwhelmed at the very thought of organizing, where do you start? Wayne has a few tips for you. “The first step is to identify what items in your home and/or garage could be stored. What rooms in your home could be free of clutter and used for living instead of storing? Once you have identified this, then the second step is to call us. Our helpful staff will talk with you about the process and ask you a few questions about your items.”

The facility is open seven days a week and welcomes curious visitors who want a tour, and someone’s always on hand to figure out the size of the room needed, what kind of packing materials (like lots of bubble wraps for fragile ornaments), and how many boxes are called for. All that’s left after that is scheduling a move-in day. It might just make your holidays a little lighter and brighter.

During the month of December, Solana Beach Storage is providing 20% off its small, medium and large boxes when you buy four of any size. The boxes are high-quality cardboard that can be used for long-term storage. The facility always provides a special “free truck and helper” with every storage room rented. And you can also reserve a truck in advance.

Solana Beach Storage is currently offering a special deal of 50% off one month or 50% off two months, depending on the storage-room size. The facility is located at 545 Stevens Avenue in Solana Beach. (The second location is located at 908 Sherman Street in San Diego.) For more information on either location, visit 5starstorage.com.

— Business spotlights are developed through this newspaper’s advertising department in support of our advertisers.