2024 New Facility Of The Year: Tiger Storage, Anderson, SC

For 20 years, Mike Phillips idly flipped through self-storage periodicals and industry magazines that showed up on his desk as a general contractor and developer. The world of storage piqued his interest, but he never found just the right opportunity to take a leap into the fray. A few years ago, Opportunity Zones were instituted to encourage investment into areas in need of revitalization.  

“It incentivized reinvesting gains from a property sale into these areas, something my brother and I had just done,” says Mike Phillips of Tiger Storage in Anderson, S.C. “I found this piece of property I thought was perfect for storage and building. You don’t want to build in an Opportunity Zone just for the fact that it is in an Opportunity Zone. It still needs meet all the other metrics: good traffic count, number of households around the facility. We did our feasibility reports, created a proof of concept to support it; in the end, I still looked at it from the standpoint of ‘what's the highest and best use for this property,’ and it worked.” 

And so began the MSM’s winner of the 2024 New Facility of the Year award’s foray into the world of Self Storage. 

Building And Development 

Even experienced general contractors with successful building businesses are not immune to the dramas of building a dream facility. Construction woes added a year to the process for Tiger Storage. 

“Being in this business and building for as long as I have, I went into it expecting delays and challenges,” says Phillips. “There are frustrations and emotions, certain times where you don’t know if it is going to happen, but you just have to keep going. The permitting part really got bogged down. We got stuck in an information loop between design, submittals, critiques, resubmitting, getting it reviewed again, more critiques coming back—it was an endless cycle. The stormwater was the biggest challenge for site approvals. Once we got past that hurdle, the building itself was pretty straightforward.” 

The building site was originally prepped for a Fred’s Shopping Center before stopping mid-development in 2008. 

“They had put stormwater infrastructure in place we tried to repurpose, but it would have been easier if we just started with a clean slate. It added a lot of complexity for approvals. Anderson County was great to work with and held files they dug up from 2007, but we had to piece together why those designers made decisions, where and why they stopped.” 

Phillips credits a patient engineer for helping work through all the iterations to solve the puzzle. In the meantime, county agencies had changed, so some prior approvals came from departments that didn’t even exist anymore. Reproving the plans while adjusting to more stringent rules as time passed delayed progress. Finally, it was time for Phillips to get to the fun part. 

“All those years, studying different facilities gave me awesome ideas of what I wanted to do,” says Phillips. “Some of it came down to cost and what fit best on the property. I wanted open sprinklers to avoid doors, auto-sliding door entry, clean lines, modern. I came up with the concept and worked with Jason Perry, an architect with Storage Design Group, who interpreted that and drew the interior layout. My day-to-day job was building high-end custom homes and I get into design with every one of my projects. Design work is what I have my hands in all the time; I really enjoy that process.” 

Despite feeling he had a handle on his facility’s creation, Phillips knew bringing in pros to help manage the business would lead to true success.

Management Matters 

A consistent element of Phillips’s success has been the importance of finding good people and honoring the expertise of that team through genuine partnership.  

“Our collaboration with Mike and Tiger Storage was truly exceptional,” says M. Anne Ballard, president of Universal Storage Group. “From the very first call, Mike’s enthusiasm and commitment to creating a standout facility were clear. His commitment to incorporating unique features, from Nokē Smart Entry to the distinctive Tiger Paws above the units, set his site apart in the market and made the entire process dynamic and highly collaborative. Mike was deeply involved in every detail, consistently brought fresh ideas to the table. His proactive approach to our new store checklist streamlined onboarding and contributed to a smooth, successful launch.” 

Phillips’ career led him to build project homes and buildings for many in the self-storage industry. One such client introduced him to Universal Storage Group with a hearty recommendation. 

“Having current owners refer to Universal Storage Group is always a bonus; it reflects the trust and satisfaction we aim to build with every project,” says Ballard. “Working with such dedicated, detail-oriented owners like Mike makes our work both easier and incredibly fulfilling. Our team members genuinely care about the success of each site, fostering close, supportive relationships with owners to ensure their happiness and long-term success.” 

Despite being a well-studied experienced builder with a passion for learning about the self-storage industry, Phillips felt it was a no brainer to hire a management team to take Tiger to the next level. 

“The right property management team is crucial to elevating a facility to award-winning status,” says Ballard. “With expertise in market positioning, a top-tier management team ensures a facility stands out by delivering unique offerings like cutting-edge technology and user-friendly interfaces that resonate with today’s customers. The team also maintains close-knit collaboration and strong vendor partnerships, equipping each site with the latest technology and innovative, experience-enhancing services.” 

Universal’s partnership with Tiger Storage arrived at a slightly later stage than usual. Ballard designed and developed over a dozen award-winning properties. In this case, Phillips Brothers Contracting had completed the building stage and the smaller trades were starting to do their work. Fortunately, the chosen tech (Nokē Smart Entry, SiteLink, Access Control Technologies) aligned, so the collaboration remained seamless.  

Doors And More 

Sometimes a door is a door, and sometimes it is far more. Phillips had studied his magazines and new facilities as they launched and was enamored by what great tech could do for the consumer. His decision to install Janus International’s Nokē Smart Entry throughout the entire building, the only facility in his market to do so, was a major differentiator and selling point. 

“Tiger Storage’s facility is one of the most beautiful projects I have had the privilege to work on,” says Hayden Buettner, East region sales manager for Nokē Smart Entry. “It was important to the Tiger development team to provide technology solutions as part of their offering. Nokē Smart Entry was the perfect fit for their needs, as it offers a seamless tenant experience along with tools that make day-to-day operations at the facility much more efficient. Today’s industry demands more tech-forward solutions that improve NOI and provide self-service options for tenants.” 

Far more than just a selling point, the features of the Nokē system added a superior level of security and peace of mind for tenants—a hot topic within the industry. 

“There has been a noticeable uptick in break-ins and other security incidences throughout the country,” says Buettner. “Nokē can help mitigate the risk through a variety of means. It starts at the visual level. Potential thieves are creatures of habit and are often looking for specific visual cues to identify which units to target. Expensive disc locks signal prospective thieves to target that unit.” 

Nokē eliminates visual cues, as burglars have no way of identifying a Nokē-integrated unit as occupied or not. It also captures activity allowing managers to pin-point potential red-flag behavior for more proactive security management on site. Motion sensors allow the manager to detect motion inside the unit, as well as automate the lock check and overlocking processes. 

“Nokē is a living system, and we are constantly striving to add additional features and value-add solutions,” says Buettner. “In addition to our Nokē ONE Smart Latch solution, we now have a hard-wired option available in Nokē ION. It was important to offer both a battery-powered latch solution as well as a hard-wired lock based on market feedback. We continue to innovate based on the demands of the ever-changing self-storage industry.” 

The tech offers customization options to tailor it to each facility’s needs. Phillips was sold, choosing to go all in, but he suggests a phase-in option for those on the fence. 

“You don’t have to do all your locks, all your doors,” says Phillips. “You could even start with a few and offer it as a premium option at an increased price. People really do like the functionality. If it’s popular for your market, the locks retrofit. It is very easy to install, just remove the existing lock and replace it with Nokē without any major wiring or hassle involved. If you have an issue, you can call them, and they walk you through it pretty quickly. I’ve been very impressed with their support.” 

Automation Vs. Personal Touch 

As with the rest of his design and management decisions, considering whether to go fully automated or old school was a thoughtful one. 

“The technology within the facility was designed to be as advanced as possible,” says Phillips. “All entrances and exits are automatic sliding doors. Nokē Smart Entry system enables easy access to the facility as well as your unit—all from an app on your phone. A lot of facilities are going unmanned. They’re going remote management, but for Tiger, there’s just something about having somebody there. It makes it special.”  

This was another area in which Universal proved invaluable. “Remote operations is a hot commodity in the storage industry right now,” says Rhett Heyward, area manager/vice president of insurance for Universal Storage Group. “There’s certain urban markets, really dense-populated markets or small boutique facilities, where it’s popular. In rural, slower markets, the customer base wants to shake a hand, especially in a lease-up property. If you live in that area watching this thing being built ground up, you’re not going into this strange new place, walk up to a kiosk and talk to some animatron. That’s not going to give you any warm fuzzies.” 

On-site management can be crucial, particularly when customer-education is needed, such as with the Nokē system.  

“We aggressively looked for a manager candidate,” says Heyward. “We found a gem in Cheryl Strickland. She’s a seasoned pro with 20 years in the industry, who happened to be local. Everybody in Anderson knows everybody in Anderson. Having a manager who is a local and experienced—we couldn’t have found a better person to open such a cutting-edge facility.” 

Again, the recipe of success involves finding the best people to add to your team, and then letting them do their best for the business. “We had to pay a little bit more for Cheryl, but one of Mike’s better decisions was to let us find Tiger an experienced manager with that personal touch,” says Heyward. “She also had worked with U-Haul before, and unlike some managers, [she] saw it as an asset and a way to reach monthly goals. Every time the phone rings, that’s an opportunity to sell. It might first be for retail items related to moving, but that’s a connection with a potential tenant, and Cheryl didn’t bat an eye.” 

Strickland is often seen representing Tiger Storage at community events, participating in local outreach and charities to put a face to the name of the facility. On-site marketing events, like Customer Appreciation Days, and goody bags for holidays and new customers are part of the charm. She even does grassroots social media posts. Universal credits this personal touch as a major difference-maker.  

“I know our closest competitor is not doing these things, because it’s a manager-less facility,” says Heyward. “They have a good operation over there—it’s a very high-tech, fancy place. But we’re just crushing it because we have an on-site manager.” 

The Secret Sauce  

Not everyone would look at the local college mascot and think “storage,” unless you live in Anderson. “Clemson is such a big part of the community, we wanted to honor that local feel and add a bit of playfulness to it; I think it's being received by the community very well,” says Phillips. “Universal brings a lot to the table. They are maximizing our footprint on the internet through SEO and web optimization. They’ve dealt with just about every every type of marketing scenario and have a lot of good ideas.” 

Universal not only loves the Clemson connection, complete with unit numbers being labeled on the famed paw print, but USG wants to lead into it on a deeper level naming hallway streets after famous alumni to further tie the brands. 

“As Anne says, our secret sauce as a company is the marketing,” says Heyward. “When you have a property near a big university, that’s your anchor. That’s your Macy’s if you were a shopping center. Even little things, like Buc-ee’s [viral sensation gas station/convenience store]—it sounds crazy, but they are opening a Buc-ee’s in Anderson and that will drive in a ton of traffic and can help business.” 

Universal also instituted a popular referral system, where no-strings $50 to $100 cash checks (complete with customer images to use for social and marketing) are given to those bringing in Cheryl’s business card, printed with the referral code on the back, regardless of tenancy. Managers are asked to go to local businesses with goody bags and these cards to make connections. They also encourage managers to keep a tablet opened to the Google review page to ask customers if they’d submit a review in the moment, leading to higher standings on Google Map and search results. 

“We are a company that still believes in high-touch marketing—shaking hands and kissing babies,” says Heyward. “Nothing beats that type of marketing. Offering such a premium and popular product sells itself and has really helped us manage rates, we’re not just sacrificing dollars to to fill up occupancy. One of the reasons this property has done well financially, even in a lease-up form, is we’re trying to maintain those rates even though the market is all ‘rate battle.’ The clean, new, well-managed property has my best delinquency rate, sitting on a 0.2 percent. We’re really proud of what Mike built, and we’ve tried to stick to those rates.” 

Phillips believes presentation is its own form of marketing, ensuring clear well-lit signage and pristine exterior conditions to provide a sense of safety and convenience.  

“Tiger Storage prioritizes exceptional branding and curb appeal, upholding high standards in facility upkeep while implementing targeted marketing strategies to boost visibility and occupancy,” says Ballard. “Attention to detail is key, from meticulous operational management and staff training to creating clean, welcoming spaces that encourage customer loyalty. When all these elements come together, the facility doesn’t just meet industry standards, it surpasses them, establishing itself as a leader and earning prestigious honors like the Facility of the Year award.” 

Future Plans 

Whether due to the success of the first venture, or his long held fascination for the industry, the self-storage bug has throughly bitten Phillips.  

“Once we reach our goals of occupancy for Phase One, the current building, we hope to launch Phase Two in March or April of this coming year. That will involve non-climate controlled drive-up storage. We have another two acres of land to expand onto. Hopefully, in 2026 we will launch Phase Three. We will go where the market leads us. It could even mean adding boat and RV storage. Lake Hartwell is huge—a lot of boating, RVs, and ATVs,” he says. “The next storage project we’re doing is a conversion at a textile manufacturing plant. It will mean a lot of repairs and working around the existing features of that building. It’s gonna be a fun challenge. We closed on it in November and immediately started construction. Hopefully we will have that facility open first quarter of next year.” 

For the sake of his future tenants and community members, we certainly hope this talented tiger doesn’t change his stripes.  

Development Team 

Owner: Michael Phillips 

Builder/Developer: Phillips Brothers Contracting 

Management Company: Universal Storage Group 

Architect: Jason Perry, Storage Design Group 

Security and Door Access Provider: Nokē Smart Entry by Janus International/Access Control Technologies 

Management Software System: SiteLink 

Doors and Interior Systems: Janus International 

Sascha Zugar has nearly two decades of experience as a freelance journalist writing for national magazines, including The Washington Post, LA Times, Christian Science Monitor, National Geographic Traveler, and others