Here is a sample of the speakers at the SSAA Summit confirmed so far

 

James Gibson - Big Yellow UK

James is Chief Executive Officer, and a co-founder of Big Yellow in the UK. James was born in Fiji and moved to the UK with his parents in 1974 when his father was appointed High Commissioner for Fiji. He completed his secondary school education in London before going to study chemistry at Wadham College, Oxford. He is married to Michelle and has three children, Lara, Joeley and Milly. He was a Chartered Accountant specialising in the property and construction sectors, before becoming the Finance Director of Heron Property Corporation Limited and then Edge Properties which he joined in 1994. Edge Properties was listed on the Official List of the London Stock Exchange in 1996 and then taken over by Grantchester Properties plc in 1998. He is also a Non-Executive Director and shareholder of AnyJunk Limited . 

The ups and downs over two decades in self storage

 
James will share his story which features fascinating and personal experiences involved with starting and operating one of the largest self storage businesses in the UK, Big Yellow. He will chronicle the hurdles along his journey, from building his first site through to the introduction of a VAT tax on self storage, effectively raising prices by 20% overnight. James has an incredible story and will share how he overcame operational challenges, as well as Big Yellow’s business attitude toward marketing and the growing demand for self storage. This is a powerful, reflective session not to be missed. 
 

Dan Gregory - Gruen Planet

Dan advises management and sales departments on what truly drives their customers and employees. He builds highly functioning teams, applies discipline to creativity and advises on how to lead with the power of a purposeful and compelling identity in a rapidly changing world. Dan has developed new product lines for Coca-Cola and Unilever, invented new media formats for Murdoch Magazines, created interaction systems for categories as diverse as fast food chains and government departments and launched internal and external engagement campaigns for companies and brands such as Aussie Home Loans, the National Rugby League, News Ltd, Vodafone and MTV in Australia, the USA and Russia. A passionate educator and mentor, Dan’s presentation will compel you to make positive changes in your self storage business. 

Dramatically Increase Your Market Share

 Dan is an expert at uncovering what consumers want and developing marketing strategies to match their needs with your business. He has produced award winning and effective marketing programs for some of the world’s largest companies, as well as family owned businesses. Dan will help you analyse your local market and develop a marketing program that will meet the needs of your self storage business. There will be no excuse for not dramatically increasing your market share after hearing Dan speak in his keynote presentation and subsequent more detailed Workshop. 
 

Tim Longurst Futurist

One of the world’s leading authorities on innovation and corporate strategy, Tim has delighted audiences with his commitment to entertaining and inspiring people through highly customised presentations. Tim will inspire change to evolve from within your business. There is no doubt we live in an ever changing world and, it seems incredibly, the pace of such change shows no signs of slowing down. Tim will gain your trust with his enthusiasm and warmth and help you implement changes in this revolutionary landscape. 

Are you ready to revolutionise? 

Tim uses the latest data, powerful case studies and entertaining anecdotes from the field to bring the future to life for his audiences and inspire change within business.  Tim will prepare your business for the future trials that face the self storage industry and inspire change in your business by challenging some of your assumptions. This session will ensure your business is prepared for the changes ahead both technologically, sociologically and economically.
 

Angus Miller - Big Orange

Angus has been involved in the business of self storage since the 90’s. His beginnings in self storage were set in motion when he worked at the family owned self storage company, Millers Self Storage in Australia in 1997. As Millers grew, Angus became responsible for the growing undertaking of acquisition and development of 16 company owned and franchised stores. As the Managing Director, he was heavily involved in the sale of the business in 2005. In 2006, he founded Big Orange Self Storage in Hong Kong in order to capitalise on the emerging self storage sector in Asia. He is currently responsible for the all-encompassing task of acquisition, development, construction and operations of Big Orange’s self storage facilities in both Hong Kong and Singapore. 

Self storage: from beginnings to beyond

Angus Miller will be sharing learnings from his 16 year self storage journey, from being part of one of the pioneering self storage families through the sale of the Millers business, twice, and then on to developing the self storage market in Asia with the Big Orange brand. Angus will talk about how the industry has changed and continues to develop, challenges in establishing the industry in Asia and how to set your self storage business up for the future of self storage. Few people have the length and depth of experience in the self storage industry than Angus Miller and all self storage operators can learn from his story. 
 

Dr Adam Fraser

One of Australia’s foremost experts on health and wellbeing. Specifically, Adam’s PhD study examined the best way to exercise in order to prevent Type II diabetes. His results were so novel and ground breaking that Adam was invited to present these findings at three of the most prestigious health conferences in the world - the American College of Sports Medicine, the American Diabetes Association and the World Congress on Fitness and Nutrition. Adam is now a leading professional speaker and trainer who specialises in helping corporate Australia improve their engagement and productivity. He is a Director on the Board of the Australian Association for Exercise and Sports Science (AAESS) and Sports Medicine Australia (SMA) and writes the health and fitness section for Men’s Style and Ralph magazines. 

The key to peak performance: flow and balance 

After studying elite athletes, soldiers in tactical units and top business performers for the last 13 years, Dr Adam Fraser observed that the ability to regularly get into flow was the profound difference that set high performers apart from the norm. Adam will teach you these highly effective techniques to balance your work with your sense of self. You will learn to be super productive, develop deep focus and be in tune with your environment. Adam will show you how to make your goals clear and keep you present to make the most out of every opportunity. 
 

Simone Hill - SSAA Legal Counsel

Simone Hill has been in the self storage industry for 18 years and is widely acknowledged as the world expert on self storage legal issues. Before joining the SSAA, Simone was in private practice at Gadens Sydney and was a law lecturer at the University of Newcastle for 12 years. As in house counsel for the SSAA, she wrote all of the Association’s Storage Agreements, the MAP, and is a regular and informative contributor to various self storage trade publications including the Insider. Simone is the only person in the world with a Masters in Self Storage Law and is an engaging speaker, presenting insightful talks on self storage law throughout Australia and at various international conventions across the world. What you will learn at Simone’s session will save you money and may even save your business. Simone Hill is regularly voted one of our top event presenters - don’t miss her this year. 

Confront the wild frontier of social media

Social Media and the business world... Whether you allow your staff to use it at work, what they are saying about you and your business on their personal accounts, whether you have any right to control their posts, tweets and updates - and whether you can respond when they do - will depend on you developing an appropriate workplace policy and coming to grips with how the vast changing world of social media functions. This session will explore how this social phenomenon is playing out, including an in-depth look at how other industries and businesses have become unstuck when trying to grapple with their employees’s digital lives. A must-see for anyone dealing with today’s technology.