ames Eckhart is no stranger to awards. He’s been named “Manager of the Year” by both the Georgia Self Storage Association and Universal Storage Group (USG), which brought him onboard as a relief manager in 2005. Twenty years later, he’s still at it, currently managing Paulding Storage in Hiram, Ga. So, we thought it was time to check in on him. As always, he’s happy to talk shop, share stories, and offer tips for other managers.

Although Eckhart has been working in self-storage for most of his adult life, he was familiar with the business long before it became his calling. “My mom actually works for USG as the auction coordinator. When I was a teenager, she was managing properties, and we lived on site for a while,” he says. “Living on site wasn’t really the coolest thing in high school, but there were some perks. My friends and I had free reign, so after hours we could cruise up and down the aisles on our skateboards. There was also a big retention pond on the property which was great for throwing around the ball.”

Eckhart has seen a lot of changes in the industry since those days. “We used to allow garage bands to rent units and practice in them,” he recalls. “No one was worried about the noise back then. With the introduction of new technologies, locks and gate systems, and other security measures, the environment has changed quite a bit.”

Eckhart wears many hats, however making connections with customers is his top priority. “I like meeting customers. I know some facilities are going to the unmanned model, but that’s not the right strategy for every market. In Hiram, I know for a fact that most customers are grateful that there’s a manager on site.”

Eckhart explains that Paulding is a relatively small county (only 314 square miles in total area), but it’s growing with many new subdivisions beginning to dot the landscape. Because of this growth, most of his clientele is in the process of moving, so they’re already stressed out. By being there, he’s able to help them determine the best unit, explain fees, and so on.

When Eckhart isn’t caring for customers, he’s keeping busy elsewhere. “Walking the property, sweeping floors, fixing doors. I’ll touch up the landscaping too. The front of your property is what everyone sees when they first pull up, so although we have landscaping coming out every two weeks, I do some upkeep; I have my clippers!”

Eckhart also keeps tabs on what’s selling and what’s not in order to adjust street and web rates. “We often have a good idea of what competitors are doing, and we know what units we need to push. For example, if we have 30 units of a certain size, maybe we need to do a special or match a price. We’re the boots on the ground, and we often know best what we need to do to sell units.”

Talk of pricing leads to the inevitable: REITs and existing customer rate increases (ECRIs). Eckhart is well aware of current strategies in which the big guys bring in customers with low rates, and then raise them dramatically and quickly. “That’s my customer’s biggest complaint when they come in. They’ve moved out of one of the larger operators and feel like they got duped.”

Paulding Storage doesn’t play that game. “We do increase rates, of course, but we don’t take them from $50 to $150 in three months,” says Eckhart. “We always tell them that our web rates are lower, and that the price will increase eventually and gradually. When you’re transparent, they’re understanding. It’s all about treating the customer how you’d want to be treated.”

With such a storied career in self-storage, Eckhart has some tips for new managers (or those just looking for some advice). “First off, even if you have new cameras and upgraded security in place, you can’t be complacent. You still have to do your lock checks, which we do at least every morning and usually before we leave.”

Eckhart acknowledges that criminals can still get in, but if you catch it quickly, there’s less video to sift through, you can hand it over to the police sooner, and you can inform the tenant, which is better than them informing you.

“Second, time management is key,” he says. “If you see something that needs to be done, just do it. If you clean a unit immediately after it’s vacated, you’ll stay on top of the game. It’s the same thing I tell my kids when they have school reports and projects. Don’t procrastinate!”

Eckhart says, “Last, you’re going to have to deal with delinquencies. How you handle them will make a big difference.” When people are late, try to be courteous and understanding so they keep their calm. If you have a good tenant and see they’ve never been late, you might consider a little extension or waive a fee, but only once. “And if someone is consistently late, you have to put your foot down,” adds Eckhart. “Explain that you’re running a business and you have bills to pay just like they do.

Another part of the job that Eckhart likes is interacting with the community. “We do a lot of car wash fundraisers,” he says. “It started with my kids’ sports teams and grew from there. Last year we had three new teams take advantage of it. We supply the tents, pressure washer, and sponges and market it to the community.”

Last year Eckhart even hosted a yard sale, where tenants and non-tenants alike could sell or swap belongings. “Yeah, there’s the fear that tenants will sell all their stuff and move out,” says Eckhart, adding more than 200 people visited. “But maybe you’ll pick up some customers too! Besides, this is more about giving back and promoting Paulding Storage.”

Another new endeavor Eckhart spearheaded was a first responders’ barbecue. “We fed all the firemen and police officers for Paulding County and Dallas County. Some of these men and women get criticized more than they get appreciated, so it felt good to do this for them,” he says. “If it happens to inspire them to keep a closer eye on the facility, that’s just a bonus!”

Eckhart has no shortage of strange storage stories, but his most heroic moment has to be coming to the aid of a tenant who shot his own leg and nearly blew his finger off while trying to clear his gun before storing it.

“I called 911, but they couldn’t give me a response time, and the man was beginning to bleed out, so I put him in my car and drove him to the hospital myself,” recalls Eckhart. “Was it the right thing to do? From a liability perspective, I don’t know, but morally it was. And I’m happy to report that he survived—and kept his finger.”

Of course, most self-storage managers have had to deal with illegal live-ins, but imagine Eckhart’s surprise when he discovered a couple living in a 4-by-4 locker—a top one, no less! “They were sly. They’d slip in just before closing, you know, 9:55 p.m. or something, and they’d climb in this tiny locker. Who expects someone to sleep in a 4-by-4? But people fall on hard times and do things they normally wouldn’t do.”

Concludes Eckhart, “You’d think storage would be mundane, but you never know what’s going to happen. It’s always an adventure!”