For many self-storage operators, the daily grind of manual administration is a necessary evil—until it becomes a barrier to growth. For Optima Self Store, juggling scattered spreadsheets, endless email chains, and manual payment chasing was costing them nearly a full working day every week.

That was before they found stora.co.

In just three months of switching to Stora’s end-to-end self-storage management software, Optima Self Store has not only slashed its admin time by 9 hours per week but also boosted its top-line revenue by 10%—all without increasing headcount.

The Problem: Drowning in Admin

Before Stora, Optima Self Store operated like many successful independent facilities: a mix of legacy software, paper contracts, and manual follow-ups. The team found themselves spending hours each day on: Optima Self Store saves 9 hours a week and grows 10% in three months with Stora

• Manually processing invoices and chasing late payments.

• Answering the same “Do you have a unit?” questions via phone and email.

• Reconciling bookings across multiple OTAs and their own website.

“We were stuck,” says the store manager at Optima Self Store. “We knew we were losing potential customers because our response times were slow, and we definitely knew we were working too hard just to keep the lights on. We were burning 9+ hours a week on things that a computer should be doing for us.”

The Solution: An All-in-One Platform from Stora

After reviewing several options, Optima Self Store chose Stora (available at stora.co) for its comprehensive feature set and modern, user-friendly interface. Instead of piecing together different tools, they consolidated everything into one dashboard.

Key features that made the immediate impact:

• Automated Sales & CRM: Stora’s automated workflows instantly send availability, pricing, and payment links to leads, removing the need for back-and-forth emails.

• Online Booking & Payments: Customers can now reserve, sign contracts, and pay 24/7 without staff intervention.

• Integrated Access Control: Seamless gate and door access meant customers got PIN codes automatically after booking, eliminating manual key handovers.

The Results: 9 Hours Saved, 10% Growth

The transformation was almost instant.

1. Saving 9 hours a week
By automating payment reminders, late fee applications, and lead follow-ups, Optima Self Store reclaimed 9 hours of staff time every single week. That time has been reinvested into site improvements and customer experience enhancements.

2. Growing 10% in three months
Because Stora’s online rental experience is frictionless, Optima Self Store stopped losing “out-of-hours” customers. Within 90 days, occupancy and ancillary sales (insurance, packing supplies) increased by 10%. The ability to take instant online payments and automate upsells meant revenue per square foot climbed steadily week over week.

3. Happier customers, quieter phones
With a self-service portal and automated SMS/email notifications, routine questions dropped by over 60%. Customers love being able to manage their account from their phone without calling the office.

The Verdict: A Strategic Advantage, Not Just Software

Optima Self Store’s experience proves that modern self-storage software is not just an operational tool—it’s a growth engine.

“Stora didn’t just save us time; it changed how we grow,” the manager adds. “We went from ‘firefighting admin’ to strategically marketing our facility. The 10% growth was organic—it just happened because our sales process finally worked 24/7.”

For any self-storage owner looking to break free of manual processes and scale efficiently, the blueprint is clear. As Optima Self Store discovered, the hours saved and revenue gained make switching platforms an easy decision.

Ready to follow their lead?

See how much time and revenue your facility could unlock by visiting stora.co today.