Stories Behind the Door

Unmanned, remote self-storage is expanding rapidly, but remote technology stops working the second a physical problem hits the property . In this episode of Stories Behind the Door, I sit down with Chris Terrigno, the 22-year-old Co-Founder of Boots and Mortar, to discuss how his company is solving the maintenance problem for modern operators .

Chris details how Boots and Mortar bridges the gap between digital property management and physical facilities by deploying background-checked, W2 technicians on recurring schedules for overlocks, unit turns, and repairs

A career pivot driven by family in 2000 became a 25-year journey at the forefront of commercial self-storage . I sit down with Darren Kelly, Co-Founder and President of Right Move Storage, for an inside look at operational grit, distressed turnarounds, and agile PropTech execution .

Darren takes us inside Public Storage during the Shurgard acquisition and the early rollout of centralized revenue management . He shares the brutal trial by fire after 2008, when he helped restructure a 70-facility portfolio facing 40 maturing loans, saving 69 of them

When Desmond Fortenberry graduated from Florida State in May 2020, commercial real estate was in uncharted territory. Instead of waiting on the sidelines, he hit the road, dug through county GIS property maps, drove hours across the Panhandle to share coffee with owners, and built a brokerage career on old-school relationships.

Now Senior Vice President at Oakside, Dez joins me on Stories Behind the Door for a fast-paced look at the ground-level realities of self-storage transactions. We break down how he transitioned from notepads and parcel maps to institutional brokerage under John Lindsey, why finding operational fat, like...

I sit down with Scott Chase, President of U-Haul of Eastern Massachusetts and Board Director of the Northeast Self Storage Association (NESSA), for a grounded, behind-the-scenes look at leadership, culture, and operational strategy within one of commercial real estate's legacy operators.

Scott started with U-Haul nearly 30 years ago fresh out of high school, taking a part-time job behind the counter to support his young family. Over the course of three decades, he rose through field management and has led the Eastern Massachusetts market for the past 15 years. In this episode, Scott shares how U-Haul maintains...

I sit down with Ethan Gallowitsch, Chief Product Officer at TractIQ, for an inside look at how two former college lacrosse teammates teamed up to transform data transparency in self-storage.

Ethan and TractIQ CEO Noah Starr spent their college years at the University of Texas at Austin as co-captains running their club lacrosse program, dreaming up business concepts on their apartment rooftop after graduation. While Noah pursued real estate acquisitions, Ethan ran an early startup before joining Google, where he worked on YouTube ad revenue systems and early LLM implementations. But when a corporate promotion made him...

I sit down with Shon Bennett, Director of Business Development at Go Store It, for a deep dive into the evolving world of third-party self-storage management .

Shon spent 14 years at Extra Space Storage, beginning behind the counter as an assistant manager before leveraging a decade of operational field experience to join their corporate third-party management division . Two years ago, Shon took a leap of faith to join COO Bo Agnello and help scale Go Store It into a national powerhouse .

I sit down with Mark Cieri, Co-Founder and CEO of Storage Defender, for a deep dive into PropTech innovation, unit-level monitoring, and entrepreneurial grit 

Mark spent more than two decades in international high-tech and semiconductors before running the North American Smart Home Division for Philips Hue . Recognizing that residential smart automation centered entirely around customer peace of mind, Mark launched Storage Defender to bring that same intelligence to self-storage  

In this episode, Mark explains how tenant-facing smart monitoring creates a high-margin ancillary revenue stream for owners while delivering critical operational data

I sit down with Albert Kim, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer of StoragePilot.ai, for an in-depth conversation on artificial intelligence, operational automation, and software development in self-storage.

Albert built his first startup, Greenline POS, into an online IT retailing and compliance engine serving over 600 businesses across Canada before exiting in 2022. After entering commercial real estate, Albert teamed up with ex-Public Storage VP Kyle Lawrence and industry veteran John Lindsay to build specialized AI agent infrastructure designed specifically for storage facilities.

In this episode, Albert breaks down the mechanics behind StoragePilot's dual-agent ecosystem: the external-facing...

I sit down with Armand Aghadjanians, Director of Acquisitions at Store Here Self Storage, for his first-ever podcast appearance. Known across LinkedIn for his deep-dive research and data transparency, Armand brings an unfiltered, analytical perspective to modern real estate acquisitions.

Armand shares his journey from an art history background and a role in commercial brokerage at Colliers to joining a seasoned acquisition team with decades of combined experience. We discuss the mechanics of underwriting discipline, exploring why Store Here cut their acquisition volume to a fifth of their historical average during the peak buying craze rather than...

I sit down with Hamza Ali, Founder and CEO of Hamza Invests and creator of the Flex Space Network, for an unfiltered deep dive into the blueprint of modern small-bay industrial development.

Hamza immigrated to the United States from Dubai at 28, initially planning to build a 6,000-square-foot motorsports garage to meet visa requirements. When a buyer purchased the shell before completion for five years' worth of projected business profits, Hamza realized small bay flex was the ultimate commercial asset class.

In this episode, Hamza breaks down the exact layout math derived from over 600...

I sit down with Jefferson and Velvet Warner, founders of Velvet Touch Executive Storage, for a deep dive into the realities of developing high-end boat and RV storage. Velvet and Jefferson spent years flipping residential homes before a single phone call seeking storage for their own fifth-wheel revealed a massive supply-demand imbalance in the Phoenix market.

In this episode, the Warners share the raw, behind-the-scenes story of taking an eight-figure Class A development from raw dirt to final construction drawings. We explore how they pivoted their design from open canopies to fully enclosed structures, how they engineered...

I sit down with Ryan Chapman, Co-Founder and CEO of Lumio, for a fascinating conversation on artificial intelligence, Silicon Valley engineering, and vertical problem-solving in commercial real estate. Ryan spent nearly a decade at Apple managing teams building machine learning infrastructure and Siri agent systems before launching Lumio alongside his childhood best friend since age two, Clay Jones.

In this episode, Ryan outlines why horizontal AI systems often struggle across broad domains and why Lumio chose to go hyper-deep into self-storage. He breaks down how voice agents convert routine phone inquiries, execute complex operational playbooks, and capture...

I sit down with Travis Morrow, CEO of Store Local and Tenant Inc., for a masterclass in self-storage operations, technology, and industry trends. Travis has spent more than two decades in the business, scaling from an intern at National Self Storage to leading nationwide co-ops and media platforms for independent owners.

In this episode, we address the macro shifts transforming self-storage in 2026. Travis explains why major REIT consolidations are a natural part of the industry's lifecycle, drawing clear parallels to the hotel and hospitality sector. He breaks down how cap rates are aligning more closely with multifamily...

I sit down with Noah Woolsey from Kiwi2/Kiwi Steel for a deeply personal look at family legacy, structural engineering, and corporate transitions. Noah spent his entire youth surrounded by self-storage builders, eventually joining his father, Wayne Woolsey, to navigate one of the most respected steel operations in the commercial sector.

Noah outlines the operational realities of the July 2026 marketplace. We look closely at the macroeconomic factors that are causing developers to hold back projects until early 2027 as they wait out interest-rate shifts and steel-pricing timelines. Noah explains why Kiwi Steel embraces a proudly "old school" approach...

I sit down with Gary Edmonds, the former head of The Storage Manager, for a deeply insightful history lesson and operational reality check. Gary has spent a quarter-of-a-century operating, developing, and consulting within the storage vertical, tracking its transition from a niche real estate landhold into an intense institutional landscape.

Gary maps out his entry into the space in 2001, shifting away from residential real estate after a friend's sudden divorce forced an emergency liquidation of properties. We look closely at the modern operational traps of 2026—where owners stack up recurring software costs without measuring true local ROI. Ga...

I sit down with Laura Holmes, CEO of Warehouse Anywhere, for an inside look at how enterprise businesses are completely rethinking supply chain logistics through the lens of self-storage.

Laura shares the incredible story of navigating the massive Extra Space and Life Storage corporate merger, transforming a back-office utility into a standalone platform that handles the physical storage burdens for national sales forces. We dive into the massive operational inefficiencies inside corporate storage accounts, where companies routinely lose track of forgotten inventory and historical marketing items—and how centralized platforms provide instant visibility. Laura breaks down the ex...

I sit down with Matt McDermott, CPA, the owner of South Jersey Tax Services and my personal accountant, for a masterclass in strategic tax planning, asset protection, and wealth preservation. Matt spent the early part of his career climbing the corporate ladder of the world's most recognizable financial institutions, including Deloitte, Merrill Lynch, and BlackRock, before pivoting to run his own highly successful advisory firm.

In this episode, we explore how Matt scaled his business to over 1,200 clients by treating accounting as a process and efficiency problem rather than a sales problem.

Matt breaks down...

I sit down with Dr. Richard Dalyai, a vascular neurosurgeon and the co-founder of Self Storage Brothers, for a masterclass in operational discipline, data tracking, and intentional family leadership .

Richard brings an incredibly precise, clinical lens to real estate . After spending his twenties working 100-hour weeks during an elite residency at Thomas Jefferson University, he realized that despite his love for saving stroke patients, he wanted true asset ownership outside of massive hospital bureaucracies . Since 2020, he has partnered with his wife and mother to build a powerhouse regional brand spanning 10 locations from Raleigh East to Greenville, North...

I sit down with Will Skillman, Founder and CEO of Trowbridge Development, for an unfiltered masterclass in small-bay industrial flex operations and raw entrepreneurial discipline . Will has flipped 100 homes, managed dozens of apartment buildings, and rolled up massive mobile home portfolios across the Midwest before targeting the highly fragmented small-bay asset class .

We unpack the exact economic indicators driving the small-bay boom in 2026, where sub-5% vacancies meet a massive gap between acquisition costs and soaring replacement costs . Will explains why he chose to pull back the reins on 15 months of development planning to protect his investors' capital...

I sit down with Zach Dickens, the Chief Investment Officer at Extra Space Storage, for a masterclass in institutional real estate, macroeconomics, and programmatic growth . Zach has spent over two decades directing the investment strategies for one of the most successful public platforms in modern real estate history .

We step through the defining eras of the self-storage asset class. Zach shares behind-the-scenes insights into the 2005 Storage USA transaction, explaining how a tiny, newly public platform structured a complex joint venture with Prudential to swallow an entity three times its size . We trace the survival mechanisms Extra Space...

I sit down with Andrew Dunn, Co-Founder and Principal at VAC Development, affectionately known in the market as the Value Add Cowboys . Andrew is operating at an incredibly elite level in the middle-market commercial space across Las Vegas, Reno, and Phoenix, and he brings a masterclass in market awareness and execution to the microphone today .

We dive into Andrew's transition from executing 75 intense residential turnarounds to commanding massive commercial assets. He pulls back the curtain on how his team successfully completed a 110,000-square-foot office-to-industrial conversion, generating an incredible exit . We also discuss why he prefers the granularity o...

I sit down with Maggie Bode, Head of Enterprise Sales at Uniti AI, for a masterclass in operational efficiency and automation. Fresh off her panel at the Northeast Storage Expo, Maggie explains why deploying technology in diverse storage portfolios isn't one-size-fits-all.

She shares her transition from customer success in luxury multifamily high-rises in NYC to tech solutions in the storage sector. We discuss the math behind AI voice containment, highlighting how operators can automatically handle 80% of routine calls, allowing sales teams to focus on high-value contracts. We also explore the shifts in consumer demographics, the cost of...

I sit down with Jim McGuffin, Managing Director at Hirewell, for a fascinating look into the human capital and executive workforce driving self-storage . Jim runs the real estate division at Hirewell and has placed high-level executives, from CFOs to VPs, across more than a third of the top 25 self-storage operations in the country.

Jim brings an incredible macroeconomic perspective to the table as we navigate the realities of 2026 . We discuss the dramatic shift from the hyper-vibrant "hiring frenzy" era of 2021–2023—which saw across-the-board 10% to 15% salary hikes—to today's landscape of "cautious optimism" . Jim explains why the freeze in cap...

NYC self-storage is in the middle of the toughest regulatory fight in its history. Most operators outside New York have no idea what's coming or how fast it could spread to their market.

James Coakley, President of Cayre Equities (Treasure Island Storage) and immediate past president of the New York Self Storage Association, joins Thaddeus to unpack what's actually happening on the ground: the loss of the ICAP tax abatement that made NYC development pencil, the 35% assessment hike on storage buildings landing in 2026, the new DCWP registration law and the rulemaking fight underway right now, Intro 495's...

I sit down with Scott Zucker, a partner at Weissmann Zucker Euster + Oblinger, P.C. and a literal Hall of Fame fixture in the storage world . Scott has spent nearly four decades acting as a "counselor and defender" for storage operators, helping define the legal statutes that govern how we do business today .

We tackle the heavy-hitting issues currently keeping owners up at night. From the New York City licensing laws and the high-profile Extra Space lawsuit to the "transparency" requirements of California's SB-709, Scott provides the essential legal context needed to navigate an increasingly regulated industry...

I sit down with Frank Forte, Partner at Lucern Capital Partners, for a masterclass in consolidating the fragmented small bay industrial market . Frank has spent the last decade moving from high-level institutional banking to active ownership, raising over $100 million in equity and delivering project IRRs that most pro-formas wouldn't dare to show .

We discuss the stark reality of the 2026 real estate market—what Frank calls a "long winter" for multifamily and storage—and why he believes the "middle 80%" of a deal (the operations) is where true wealth is created . From towing 85 cars off a distressed Charlotte site to h...

I sit down with Kyle Lawrence, Co-founder and CEO of StoragePilot AI, to discuss the massive technological shift happening in self-storage. Kyle spent over two decades in the industry, rising through the ranks of Public Storage to manage operations across Canada before striking out on his own to build and sell facilities for the "orange behemoth" and other private owners .

In this episode, we explore the "operating arbitrage" available to independent owners in 2026. Kyle explains how his team built a virtual property manager and a virtual district manager to handle everything from lead-to-lease communication to 24/7 troubleshooting for...

I sit down with Stan Bonilla, Senior Vice President of Asset Management and Development at Safeguard Self Storage, for a deep dive into the institutional side of the business . Stan brings decades of experience to the table, and in this episode, he pulls back the curtain on how a privately held REIT managed by Morgan Stanley navigates a turbulent 2026 market .

We discuss Safeguard's recent pivot from ground-up development to aggressive acquisitions and why their all-cash buying power allows them to close multi-million dollar deals in under three weeks

I sit down with Nagesh Anupindi, CEO of Apoorva and SiteWare, for a masterclass in grit, innovation, and the "humble rebel" mindset . Nagesh shares his incredible journey from being a PhD student at the University of Rhode Island, studying complex Fourier transform algorithms, to becoming an interim CIO at Frontier Airlines and eventually a pioneer in self-storage technology .

We explore the birth of SiteWare, which Nagesh purposefully built without VC money to ensure he could prioritize the features five-location operators actually need . We discuss why "everything but the PMS" is the future of facility management, how to...

I sit down with Tyler Harper, Co-Founder of Homegrown Storage, for a fascinating look at how technology is finally providing an operating arbitrage in tertiary markets . Tyler's team, largely composed of Georgia Tech engineers, has built a platform that enables them to acquire roughly one facility per week while operating 30+ stores with only five people .

We discuss the grit it took to sell their retirements and pitch 200 family offices, and how they eventually found "believers" who saw the same potential for tech-driven excellence . Tyler explains the philosophy behind Patchwork Labs, thei

I sit down with Peter Smyth, Co-Founder and CEO of White Label Storage, for a deep dive into the technology and operational workflows that are reshaping the self-storage landscape. Peter shares his journey from working at Hines and attending Harvard Business School to disrupting the Brooklyn market with Local Locker .

What started as a way to monetize "dead space" in New York City has evolved into a national service platform managing over 200 facilities . We explore how Peter leverages centralized call centers to turn expenses into revenue drivers and why he believes the most successful operators in 2026 will...

I sit down with Jane Sauls, President of Sauls Commercial Real Estate, for an episode that is as much about character and tenacity as it is about real estate. Jane brings nearly 20 years of experience to the microphone, having navigated the storage world since 2006.

We explore Jane's "farm girl" roots and how that work ethic helped her survive the brutal market shifts between 2023 and 2026 . Jane shares the hard truths that owners need to hear right now: the market has reset, interest rates are finally predictable (even if they aren't "low"), and if you are being "sloppy on...

In this episode of Stories Behind the Door, I sit down with Christen Bryant, Director of Development at S3 Partners. Christen has spent 18 years in the trenches of self-storage, rising from used truck sales to becoming the President of U-Haul's Dallas-Fort Worth storage operations .

In this episode, I cover:

REIT Insights: Christen shares the unique, customer-first operational model of U-Haul and how it gave her a different perspective on the "ECRI" craze .

The "Ownership Mindset": Why Christen treats every underwriting project as if her own capital were on the line, and how...

I sit down with Jennifer Barroqueiro, Vice President of Third-Party Management at All-Purpose Storage, to discuss the unique challenges and rewards of operating in the Northeast market. Jennifer brings eight years of experience, ranging from her days as District Manager #12 at SAM to her current leadership role, to a conversation that balances tactical operations with deep-rooted company culture .

We discuss the current legislative "wave" hitting the industry in 2026 and why owners must be active in local associations like NESSA to protect their assets . Jennifer also reveals why All-Purpose Storage refuses to participate in the "race to the...

I sit down with Adam Troso, CEO and Founder of Next Century Self Storage, for a masterclass in real estate financials and resilient leadership. Adam brings 25 years of Wall Street experience to the table, providing a sophisticated look at why self-storage remains the "best way to make money owning real estate".

We explore Adam's journey from underwriting CMBS loans in the 90s to navigating the turmoil of the Great Financial Crisis at JPMorgan . Adam shares how his time on the rugby pitch at BU informed his "Just Win Baby" approach to deal-making and why he believes...

I sit down with Tom Sherlock, Co-founder of Talonvest Capital, for an essential deep dive into the financial state of self-storage. With a career spanning back to 1985, Tom has lived through the RTC crisis, the Great Financial Crisis, and the current 2026 market shift .

Tom shares the story of how his firm made a high-stakes bet on the "institutionalization" of storage back in 2011, pivoting their business just as the asset class began its meteoric rise . We discuss the current "reality check" for developers and owners who capitalized deals three years ago, the abundance of capital still chasing the...

I sit down with Ken Woolley, the visionary Founder of Extra Space Storage, for a masterclass in industry history and leadership philosophy. Ken has been in the self-storage game for 56 years, witnessing the asset class transform from niche "garage rentals" into a mainstream institutional power player .

Ken shares incredible stories from the early days, including his time as a management consultant in Boston and his 1973 study of the only 26 storage properties in Los Angeles . We discuss the current "tight spot" the industry finds itself in with cap rate shifts and excess supply, and why he remains bullish...

I sit down with Brett Turner, Senior Managing Director at BKM Capital Partners, for a masterclass in small bay industrial investment.

Brett and his team are currently managing approximately $3.4 billion in AUM, specializing in multi-tenant industrial parks . In this conversation, we discuss why this asset class is incredibly difficult to manage but yields massive rewards for those who are vertically integrated. We explore the "replacement cost" gap that makes ground-up development nearly impossible to pencil, the shifting demand from small businesses, and why the current interest rate environment is creating a "perfect setup" for cash-flow-focused investors.
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I sit down with Cory Sylvester, Principal at DXD Capital, for a masterclass in data-driven development and intentional leadership.

Cory's path to becoming one of the most respected names in self-storage didn't start with real estate; it started at JP Morgan. After identifying a massive lack of institutional-grade data in the storage sector, Cory co-founded Radius+ and eventually DXD Capital, a firm currently managing 25 active developments. We discuss his transition from the "bureaucratic construct" of big banks to the high-friction world of entrepreneurship, ultra-marathons, and volunteer firefighting.

Key Takeaways from this Episode:

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I sit down with Andrew Capranos, President of 10 Federal, to discuss the intersection of high-level operations and cutting-edge technology in self-storage.

Andrew's journey is a masterclass in efficiency. After managing retail teams of 400+ people at Target, he realized the incredible potential of the storage industry's margins—if you can get the operations right. We discuss his time at Public Storage, the birth of DaVinci Access Control, and the 10 Federal philosophy that "Customers want outcomes, not interactions."

Key Takeaways from this Episode:

The Necessity of Automation: Why a looming national labor shortage makes manual, on...