Self storage startup Stuf Storage has opened two locations in Seattle. The properties mark the company’s entry into its eighth metro area. Stuf currently has a presence in markets such as Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Atlanta, Boston, San Diego and Washington D.C.
The first Seattle location is at 220 & Change, an office property owned by Rubicon Point Partners, which acquired the building in 2021 from Alexandria Real Estate Equities. The transaction was part of a $24.1 million portfolio deal, Yardi Matrix data shows. In partnership with Stuf, 3,500 square feet of basement space is now used as a self storage location.
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The second location is at 400 University @ Rainier Square, a 10-story office building, developed by Wright Runstad & Co. in a joint venture with Intercontinental Real Estate Corp. Stuf transformed 5,500 square feet of mezzanine space into a self storage facility accessible through the garage level below the office building.
The Stuf locations in Seattle offer climate-controlled units ranging from 24 to 80 square feet, as well as amenities such as video surveillance, private entrance and locked access. Located at 220 2nd Ave. S. and 400 University St. in downtown Seattle, the two self storage facilities have access to Interstate 5.
Turning underutilized space into self storage
Founded in 2020, the company partners with real estate owners to use and monetize various spaces in commercial buildings, including basements, garages and other types of underutilized spaces that are transformed into tech-enabled self storage facilities. In 2020, Stuf raised $1.8 million in seed funding and three years later, the company closed on $11 million in Series A financing, which was led by Altos Ventures and Allegion Ventures, as well as Willshire Lane Capital and Harlem Capital.
Earlier this spring, Stuf Storage entered the Boston market. The company partnered with Jamestown to convert an overflow storage for a 12-story office building into 40 padlocked storage units.