Starting in the later part of 2019 and till date, COVID-19 has caused immense consequences for all social and economic sectors in countries around the globe. While the health sector has definitely been affected by the virus’s strain, the education sector has suffered an equally strong blow.
The effects have been just as extreme and detrimental in the UK as they have been for other countries in the world.The repercussions for students in terms of education have been severe, while there have been attempts to improve the situation with online classes. Yet, international students and local students studying in cities away from home have struggled with other factors, such as moving back to their home countries/towns until classes resumed.
Students in universities and colleges were rather disturbed as classes were suspended starting in mid-March 2020 when the UK moved towards a lockdown. Without any information on how long this situation was going to persist and since universities and colleges startedvirtual classes,many students who were living away from home (international or local) decided to move back until the situation improved.
The move was for several purposes including staying safe from contagion in crowded student accommodation, for financial purposes, and/or to be with family during this difficult and testing time.
Since it was impractical and at times also impossible to take all possessions back home when moving out of accommodation, as the move was temporary, the need for storage arose more than it did in normal circumstances.
STORED, a London-based storage company, helped students achieve a stress-less move by providing all-inclusive storage services that allowed students to get their belongings picked up from their doorstep and taken to a secure storage unit.
The company is known for “taking the hassle out of self storage” and they were extremely popular in this time of need due to their unique value proposition.
STORED offers a door-to-door storage service in which the customer enjoys free collection of belongings from their doorstep. The belongings are then taken to the storage unit and stored for as long as the customer requires. The package also includes £500 liability coverage and the option to view a list of items in their storage unit from an online account.
A total of 125,035 international students were studying in London in 2018-19, making London the most popular international student destination in the world, surpassing cities in the United States. With the affliction of COVID-19, many of these students had storage needs that were either temporary as they moved residences to safer and less crowded places or for longer durations as they moved back home while lockdowns persisted.
The students had several needs pertaining to storage during this time and STORED was successfully able to meet all of them, providing a safe and reliable storage service to lessen the stress of the situation.
STORED provided affordable storage facilities for students so they could leave their belongings in a safe place while they reunited with family in their home country/home town or while they shifted residences to move to less crowded areas.
Affordability was a key advantage as students suffered immense setbacks financially during this time- many of them lost their jobs, many were working less, and those who were financing themselves through businesses also suffered huge losses. STORED’s prices were very low and the company also offered discounts to further ease the situation for students in need.
More important in this situation was STORED’s business model- unlike self storage, STORED provides a pick-up and returns service that leaves nothing to do for the customer. As mentioned above, public transport ran the risk of contagion and it was extremely difficult to transport a large number of belongings to a storage warehouse.
STORED’s services include free collection and students were given the advantage of their belongings being picked up from their doorstep, keeping them safe and indoors while STORED handled their stuff. Returns with the company work the same way as students only have to book a return and the STORED van returns their belongings to a designated address.
The company also provides packing services to help students pack their belongings properly before storing them and this service was also highly demanded during this time. Another in-demand service was the company’s international shipping service as plans changed and many students decided to defer the educational year instead of return back to the UK immediately. Students were able to get their belongings in storage shipped to wherever in the world they required.
Additionally, STORED offered 1-hour urgent pick-up time slots where students could book a collection with only 1-hour notice. This particularly helped students deal with emergency moves and provided a no-hassle no-stress solution.
“Dealing with the consequences of COVID-19’s onset was critical for any business and STORED adapted to the situation by offering 1-hour time slots for students and other individuals with urgent moving and storage needs. We are happy that our all-inclusive business model was a source of comfort and ease during this time. Helping people store in a cheaper and more efficient manner is why we came into business and being able to do that for so many people during a sensitive time was truly rewarding,” says Peter Gentzel, STORED’s Managing Director.
STORED continues to provide affordable storage services for students and other customers and has been and will be operational during the COVID-time. In an effort to help students and customers in other areas besides London, the company is soon opening its doors for Brighton, Surrey, Portsmouth, Eastbourne, and Canterbury.