The company aims to use the funds to expand across the North West, with a second site in Liverpool already targeted.

Regional venture capital investor Bridges Community Ventures has provided £2 million to Wirral-based self-storage business Smart Storage. The company aims to use the funds to expand across the North West, with a second site in Liverpool already targeted.

‘The UK self-storage market is still significantly underdeveloped,’ claims Smart Storage’s managing director Jon Wyles, ‘and with 85 per cent of facilities based in London and the South East, there is an excellent opportunity to exploit the lack of facilities in the North West.‘ Smart Storage has been operating self-storage facilities from its site in Bromborough in the Wirral since 1995.

This is the first significant investment in the North West for Bridges, which was established to invest in ambitious businesses in the most under-invested parts of England. Bridges director Carolyn Maddox joins the board as a non-executive and has introduced former CEO of Access Self Storage Mark Evans as non-executive chairman.

Says Maddox: ‘As a property-backed business in a growing market with locations naturally suited to Bridges target areas, Smart Storage is a great fit with Bridges financial and social objectives. We are delighted to be backing an experienced management team who have proven the concept with their first site.’