very industry has noteworthy members. This could be due to setting up the stage through ideas, improvements to existing practices, and/or lobbying for legislation. Or maybe they are involved in a multitude of boards and professional associations, so that no matter how long you’ve been around, you’re bound to come across them on a regular basis. And while some of them make good subjects for newsletters and social media posts, others deserve a much bigger spotlight.
Such is the case for Chris Rudel. Not only has he been a true veteran in self-storage, with over 50 years of experience and several successful businesses, anyone who works in the industry in Arizona, California, or Nevada knows how he has thoroughly and selflessly intertwined leadership with offering everyone around him a helping hand.
In this story, we reveal the details about the man behind the legend: his upbringing, challenges, and biggest life lessons. We’ll also get a sense of what he’s brought to the communities around him through the words of his esteemed industry colleagues and family members. And despite all his accomplishments, Rudel credits those around him for all the good things in his life.
very industry has noteworthy members. This could be due to setting up the stage through ideas, improvements to existing practices, and/or lobbying for legislation. Or maybe they are involved in a multitude of boards and professional associations, so that no matter how long you’ve been around, you’re bound to come across them on a regular basis. And while some of them make good subjects for newsletters and social media posts, others deserve a much bigger spotlight.
Such is the case for Chris Rudel. Not only has he been a true veteran in self-storage, with over 50 years of experience and several successful businesses, anyone who works in the industry in Arizona, California, or Nevada knows how he has thoroughly and selflessly intertwined leadership with offering everyone around him a helping hand.
In this story, we reveal the details about the man behind the legend: his upbringing, challenges, and biggest life lessons. We’ll also get a sense of what he’s brought to the communities around him through the words of his esteemed industry colleagues and family members. And despite all his accomplishments, Rudel credits those around him for all the good things in his life.
This closeness influenced his college career. Rudel enrolled at North Dakota State University in Fargo. He started his studies by majoring in engineering, but he soon found that he wasn’t that enamored with the subject. He was more interested in psychology, since it helped him better understand one of his younger brothers, who was a special needs child, so he eventually switched majors.
“Having a brother who had special needs made me want to work with other people with the same challenges,” Rudel says. “Back then, having a child with such a condition was often deemed an embarrassment, and a lot of families hid their kids. I wanted to change that, so I got involved in some community programs with the YMCA.” While in college, he coordinated teaching students at three local universities to run a program for mentally disabled people. “We would go on speedboats, snowmobiles, and plan other recreational activities.” It was rewarding for him to see them having so much fun, and it was life changing for them to be accepted.
This community involvement eventually led Rudel to get a graduate degree in special education from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. After graduating, he taught special needs children at Omaha public schools. However, this part of this career would be short lived. About a year into teaching, his father moved to Phoenix because the state offered more support for his mentally challenged son. Rudel moved to Arizona to be closer to his family.
While in the Grand Canyon State, he became involved with the Boy Scouts and worked as a Scoutmaster for a decade. It was an enjoyable role that allowed him to continue working with children and spend time in nature—something he and his wife, Carol, have always loved to do. “We’d go backpacking and camping all over the state. It was really fun.”
The move was also a catalyst to switch careers. Once in the Southwest, his dad got into real estate, and Rudel decided to join him. “My father was very entrepreneurial and was always looking for a challenge,” he states. “He had grain and feedlot operations in North Dakota and built a grocery store for his hometown.”
The memories of starting the project are bittersweet. While working together during those early days, Rudel’s dad was diagnosed with leukemia, and they were both aware that he had a limited time. In fact, his father passed away at 53 years of age, halfway through the development of the facility. “It was at that point that I got my general contractor’s license,” he says. “That way, I could complete construction on that project.”
This tenacity has been evident in everything Rudel has done throughout his professional life. Once he makes up his mind to do something, he goes all in. This is something colleagues in self-storage attest to.
“I’ve known Chris for over 50 years,” says Bob Schoff, who, along with Rudel, co-founded the Arizona Self-Storage Association (AZSA). “And I can say that he’s like the phoenix from Arizona. In the 70s, there was nothing regulating this industry—no lease agreements, no lien laws. And he was very instrumental in getting everything off the ground.” Although life can get complicated and cause people to shift priorities, Rudel has always juggled everything well.
“I’ve been on and off associations throughout the decades,” Schoff says, “but Chris has always remained involved. I’ve never known him to miss a single meeting. He always wants to help everyone, make things better. Always selfless, always devoted.”
Rudel also went into a partnership with a developer in Newport Beach. “My uncle and I invested in a building in Arizona, and this developer rented office space in it, so we decided to go into business with them by building warehouses in Phoenix and Vegas.”
After a few years of the partnership, Rudel decided to turn his focus exclusively on self-storage. “I already had my first facility in Phoenix, then built a single-story project in Tempe and a multistory facility in west Phoenix,” he says, proudly adding that he’s still owns them and they are in better condition today than they were back then.
Amy Amideo has been the executive director of AZSA since 2020. “Ever since I started at this position, Chris has played a crucial role in my success,” she shares. “He’s been a mentor since day one, especially when I was new and overwhelmed. He always took time from his busy schedule to make sure I felt supported.” Not only is she grateful for his guidance, but she has a long list of compliments when speaking of him. “He’s such a great human being—so wise, kind, funny, great businessman. I’m really happy to know him.”
Hardy Good, chairman and CEO of New Empire Ventures, whole heartedly agrees. “Chris Rudel is a fine man of the highest integrity—a true early pioneer in the self-storage industry in Arizona.”
Good explains how he met Rudel early on in his career, and that he admires that Rudel has always been courteous and generous with his knowledge and experience. “He’s always helpful. Even in the 70s, when there was a significant reluctance within the industry to share information, he’s always shared helpful insights. Nowadays, it’s a lot more common for even competitors to share information, but Chris has done it since the beginning. He’s always been honest, open, and helpful.”
Similarly, Ray McRae, vice president of Storage Solutions, explains how self-storage insiders will greatly miss him as the sun sets on his career. “I have known Chris since I ventured into the self-storage business back in 1998. It has been an honor serving so many years with him on the Arizona Self-Storage Association board; I was sad to hear the news that he’s retiring from AZSA,” says McRae. “His level headedness and can-do attitude has always been an inspiration to everyone. I really wish him all the best in every pursuit in life’s journey, although I will truly miss working with him.”
His colleagues aren’t the only ones who love him. Rudel even passes the likability test with some of the most challenging people to truly win over: the in-laws.
His son-in-law, James Appleton, director of program sales at MiniCo Insurance Agency, has many heartfelt things to say about him, too. “Chris is a down to earth, North Dakota farm boy with a servant’s heart and an abundance of time to mentor everyone, in both life and the self-storage industry.”
Appleton also admires Rudel’s will to continue moving forward even when facing emotionally tolling difficulties. “When he decided to continue working on the facility he started building with his father, he helped forge the way for a burgeoning industry, both in Arizona and nationally,” he points out, describing a situation that could have easily been abandoned after the heartbreak of losing his dad. But what’s even more impressive is that he didn’t stop once the project was completed. “By way of the Arizona Self-Storage Association, Chris helped craft some of the first lien laws that other states still utilize and reference in their own laws. A true pioneer.”
Rudel’s guidance has also been the roadmap that led Appleton where he is today in his career. “I was previously in the television/advertising industry,” he says. “We shut the company down in 2006, and Chris gave me the opportunity to move the family out to Phoenix and jump headfirst into commercial real estate and self-storage. I definitely wouldn’t have seen myself in the industry if it weren’t for his mentorship and support.”
Appleton’s gratitude and admiration extend on a personal level, too. “Everyone is family to Chris, and everyone gravitates to him. He isn’t one to seek accolades, but he has the respect of everyone he has ever worked with, and it’s an honor to be his son-in-law.”
First, challenges and failures are part of life. As a personal example, he shares that when he was in real estate, he put a lot of time, effort, and money into projects that didn’t work out. He specifically remembers an industrial park in Prescott Valley, for which he worked on for 15 years, only to break even.
And in the 1980s, when things got rough in the real estate market, he didn’t panic. He thought of ways he could transfer his skills into services that would still be in demand. That’s when he pivoted and started offering consulting services to mortgage banks, providing advice on whether certain properties should be developed or sold as they were, and how to proceed to regain their capital.
“The Lord has always opened a door for me, even in challenging times,” he says, looking back. “We were able to not only learn but make a decent living during a tough stretch in the real estate market.”
In fact, that’s the best advice he has for people who are starting their careers. “Stay focused. There are a lot of distractions in life, and this can be very problematic, since they can become hurdles to completing projects.”
He believes that having a narrow scope of endeavors increases the likelihood of finding viable solutions to life’s challenges and success in projects. “Other attractive opportunities would come along, and I chose to stay within self-storage. I decided early on to take on one project at a time to take them to fruition.”
Also, he advises that when the going gets tough, keep pushing forward, and don’t forget to help others while doing it. Because that’s something else that has been paramount for Rudel: being mindful of those around him. He’s the living example of the adage “a rising tide lifts all boats.”
In the professional sphere, he has resigned from his board position at AZSA, but he mentions that being involved in the association has been one of the most positive and uplifting aspects of his career. He’s grateful for the industry in general. “One of the best things about self-storage is the quality of the people,” says Rudel.
The Rudels also still love being active members of their community. Both he and his wife have been involved in church and youth leadership throughout the years, because that’s the biggest thing about him: Despite all of his professional accomplishments, he highlights that what he values most are the people he loves.
“My priorities in life have been my faith, my family, and my friends. And I think to a large degree, that’s a good share of the basis of the successes we’ve been able to achieve.”
It’s also a value he learned from his dad. “One of the things my father taught me is that the person who’s most successful is the one who surrounds himself with the best team of positive people. Your work should be a passion and enjoyable. And the Lord has blessed me in providing just that.”