The UK Master Franchisees, Martin Brown and David Smith bring to the brand vast professional experience with distinguished careers in investment banking and commercial real estate. Both have commenced training at Howards Storage World Australia ahead of the Edinburgh launch. Mr Brown says Howards Storage World responds to a growing demand for stylish and functional home storage solutions.

"We conducted extensive research into franchising opportunities before discovering Howards Storage World and we immediately saw a highly specialised brand offering that wasn't available in the UK. We are very optimistic about the market demand for home storage products and see strong potential for this brand to succeed throughout the region," says Mr Brown.

The Howards Storage World franchise began in 1997 with the first store located in Northbridge, Sydney. The Northbridge store was originally owned by Les Howard before current joint CEO, Dirk Spence joined forces with Les to officially launch the franchising venture.  Today the business has grown to 64 stores throughout Australia and 81 stores internationally. Mr Spence says Howards Storage World is confident the Australian brand will fair well in the UK.

"We're very excited to be expanding into the UK. Consumers today prefer a specialty retail environment and Howards' success is largely due to our commitment to delivering great range, quality and service. We continue to strive to excel in these areas and feel consumers in the UK will welcome our highly specialised service offering," says Mr Spence.

Howards Storage World franchises currently operate in Australia, New Zealand, Spain, Singapore, Ireland and the GCC Territories in the Middle East (including Dubai and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia). Master agreements have been signed for the Benelux Region of Western Europe and the Philippines with stores set to open later this year, and a Memorandum of Understanding has been signed for Scandinavia which encompasses Norway, Sweden and Denmark.

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