About Us
Our storage centre occupies the iconic Jenners Depository Building on Balgreen Road, Edinburgh. The red-brick building is 5 minutes away from Murrayfield, Scotland’s national rugby stadium, and a stone’s throw away from the city centre. Find out more about this local landmark and its place in Edinburgh’s history.
The site is made up of 3 main structures: the Lodge, the Stables and of course the Depository. The layout provided easy manoeuvrability for horse and cart in days gone by, and maintains its functionality to this day: despite transport options changing considerably.
Built in 1925 by renowned Scottish architect, James Bow Dunn, the function of the building was to provide storage for the Jenners Department Store on Princes Street. The Department Store’s life reputedly began when a pair of Englishmen, Charles Kennington and Charles Jenner, were sacked from their jobs as Edinburgh drapers for attending the Musselburgh races rather than go to work!
Image source: SC 764517 © Historic Environment Scotland (Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre Collection). Licensor canmore.org.uk
However rather than dwell on this ignominy, the brave pair used their winnings to purchase the lease on a converted townhouse property on Princes Street with a view to starting their own drapers.
Trading officially commenced on May 1st 1838 under the name “Kennington and Jenner”, and their ambitious aim to provide the citizens of Edinburgh with the finest silks and linens from home and abroad lead to the store becoming known as “the Harrods of the North.”
Image source: SC 1246233 © Historic Environment Scotland (Aerofilms Collection). Licensor canmore.org.uk
In 2006, Jenners Department Store was sold to the House of Fraser. Due to the infrastructure of this particular chain of retail outlets, the Depository was potentially redundant in its original form. However, the opportunity to salvage this iconic building from the clutches of redevelopment into flats presented itself and Edinburgh Self Storage took on the building.
After a full restoration including: the installation of state of the art digital security, internal modernisation and fit-out with over 25 different sizes of storage units. The Depository has been transformed into one of the most modern self storage facilities in Edinburgh whilst still retaining its original features and characteristics.
The new tramway which passes and stops at Balgreen Road, right beside the Jenners Depository, is a 14 km line which runs between York Place in central Edinburgh to Edinburgh Airport and occupies the same location as the old Balgreen Halt Station, closed in 1956.
There are 15 stops in total and when it finally opened on 31 May 2014 six years after construction started, it had cost a staggering £776 million – more than 100% over budget but better late than never! Despite the delay and the cost, the opening of the Balgreen Road tram stop is a welcome return for local residents after the closure of the last train line in 1956.
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