Safestore

I ended up going to Safe Store to check out our old lockers and see what was left in there. From me calling ahead to arrange my first visit, to the conversation I had with the girl on reception on arrival and subsequently entering the building and loading up the car, all the staff were super friendly, effective and efficient.
There are lifts for heavy loads, plenty of carriages available to take your goods to your vehicle and a couple of large skips for card and general waste. The foreman was very polite and willing to help us dispose of our rubbish.
Just situated opposite Old Trafford and 10 mins drive from the city centre, it’s fairly easy to get to from town.
Overall a painless experience if not the most fun I’ve ever had on a Wednesday morning.
Free wifi is on offer and the toilets are by reception.

*Sigh* As you can probably all tell, I love writing Unilocal reviews. But I’d been putting off this one for as long as possible, simply because going to SafeStore is one of the chores I find the most dull, and writing about it seems even more so. Once I’m ensconced in my little unit sorting out my deliveries everything’s fine; it’s just the sheer logistics around it — the fact that this particular branch is based around one of the most Soviet-​looking industrial estates in Trafford, just round the corner from that place ‘open 8 days a week’ which sells millions of fireplaces and has the sign at the top where the guy’s supposed to look like Yul Brynner but actually resembles Dr Evil… you know the one I mean. Ugh. Still, not too far from White City Retail Park if you want to pick up a hoover or a telly.
Anyway, what could a storage company be if not A-​OK? First of all it’s serving a purpose, which for me is storing stuff. At just shy of £80 a month I get a superbly tall unit which more than happily fits everything I need to cart around with me from time to time. It’s easy to get to (although taxi drivers and first-​time visitors seem to have great trouble with it… it evades sat-​navs somehow so a quick tip is to use Google Maps), but what else could possibly be critiqued here? Well for one there’s the clunky old lift which has a habit of shutting down from time to time. It’s always quite busy at the units no matter what time you go, and some of your deliveries end up in the holding room… I’ve been to this SafeStore at least twenty times and I’ve still no idea where this is. Clearly mark it, people!
The service can be varied depending on who you’re dealing with that day. For example my introduction to this branch involved some engaging and helpful people who set up a business account and direct debit for me and handed me my padlock within minutes. Yay! I’ve also had lovely members of staff carry stuff right out to my taxi for me as well. But occasionally you will meet those working there who look like they want to do themselves in, and this can be somewhat demotivating.
All in all though it does what it says on the tin, and if you’re looking for storage in Manchester you could do worse. There are loads of these bad boys around and they offer all kinds of discounts and deals, so next time you need stuff stored be sure to check them out. Also you can rent office space from them and turn your unit into a studio if you want. I’m pretty sure one of the ones near me is a pirate radio booth. *And* the trolleys are fun to ride up and down the corridors on as well. Wheeeeeee!