Martin’s Properties, a family-owned real estate company operating in London and South England, has launched Cactus Self Storage, a wholly owned and funded platform through which it intends to acquire and develop facilities across South and Southwest England. The company also named Graham Gunn as head of operations, according to a press release.
Construction on Cactus’ first purpose-built self-storage facility at the corner of Abingdon Road and Hadden Hill in Didcot, England, begins this month, with an expected opening in the first quarter of 2027. It’ll offer more than 300 units. Additionally, planning has been submitted for a second site on Bristol Parkway in Bristol, England. The company acquired the property in October and hopes to open the site next year.
The launch of Cactus is part of Martin’s strategy to diversify its business interests into four core pillars, which include asset management across its portfolios in Chelsea, its regional portfolio of active asset management and development in Southern England, and its subsidiary Obsidian Strategic, a development company.
“Having identified self-storage as a robust growth sector with strong fundamentals—which have been accelerated by consumer trends such as home-working, upsizing or downsizing, and smaller homes with less storage and garage space—we are excited to officially launch Cactus Self Storage, our dedicated self-storage business. Utilizing our existing in-house expertise across asset management and development, alongside our new head of self-storage operations, we are able to deliver strong returns to the wider Martin’s Properties business,” said Richard Bourne, CEO. “The industry has seen a rise in the supply of self-storage facilities, but without a unique perspective or integrated platform emerging—until now. With Cactus, we are creating an original, innovative, sustainable, high-quality portfolio, which will offer the market something different in this fast-growing sector.”
Cactus is targeting 1- and 2-acre sites for self-storage development in Aylesbury, Banbury, Bath, Cheltenham, Dorchester, Gloucester, Taunton, Trowbridge and Yeovil, the release stated.
Gunn has 25 years of self-storage experience. He’s held senior roles with Access Self Storage and The Self Storage Company, where he helped established the business as a leading independent operator. Most recently, he worked with the self-storage team at EQT Real Estate.
“While being tech-led, we still believe self-storage should have a human touch. Each site will be secure and safe and have a strong community focus as well as focusing on contiguous improvements in sustainability credentials to make these facilities green and affordable,” Gunn said. “With a strong tech-enabled focus, it helps to enhance the customer experience.”
Established by the Martin Family in 1946, the company has a multi-sector property portfolio worth around £400 million, with assets across commercial, residential, mixed-use and self-storage. The business has in-house investment, asset management, development and operational expertise.
