Australia’s self-storage startup Spacer has acquired US-based Roost. Through the acquisition, Spacer aspires to make an entry into the $27 billion U.S. self-storage market and will rebrand Roost as Spacer.
In addition to the rebrand, Spacer will retain Roost’s partnerships with Zip Car, Enterprise, and Maven Drive. It will also have Roost transfer all of its IP, databases, technology platform, and customer base.
Spacer will retain staff members and will have CEO of Roost, Jonathan Gillion focusing on building new deals and expanding operations to San Francisco, Chicago, and Washington DC before expanding in other parts of the country.
Employing a similar business model as Uber and Airbnb, the Spacer business model will utilize assets throughout the country, where both business and consumers can generate an income through space sharing. The company will seek to utilize unused spaces like garages, attics, and driveways by lending space out.
Michael Rosenbaum, co-founder and CEO of Spacer talks about the business model by stating:
Space is the new tradable commodity in the sharing economy, which is not surprising given the high density living in the U.S. The beauty of our model is that everybody from property managers, commercial landlords to your everyday American has space that can be used to create extra income.
According to statistics shared by Rosenbaum, the space-sharing industry in the US is estimated at $US27 billion and the Australian self-storage market is valued at billion dollars. He shares that the company is growing at 30 percent rise monthly, and aims for an 8-10 percent share of the operating market. Further, he adds,
The takeover is key to the company’s strategy of becoming a global leader in shared storage, commercial, and parking space. We’ve always had global aspirations, and we’re ready to move into the world’s largest self-storage market.
Apart from the acquisition, the company has also been working towards the launch of a co-working hub in Sydney.
