U-Haul Holding Company, known to most people simply as U-Haul, grew out of the post–World War II boom in American mobility. Leonard “Sam” Shoen and his wife Anna Mary started the business in 1945 in Ridgefield, Washington, responding to a clear gap: families were on the move, but affordable, one-way moving equipment was hard to find. They began by building trailers and partnering with gas stations as rental agents, sharing rental fees and gradually stitching together a nationwide network.
Over time, that single trailer concept evolved into a full moving and storage ecosystem. U-Haul became best known for its orange-striped trucks and trailers, but the company’s offerings expanded to include self-storage units, portable storage containers, towing equipment, moving boxes, packing supplies, propane refills, and hitch installation services. Many of these products and services are clustered at company-branded centers, while others are offered through independent dealers, creating a blended network that serves do-it-yourself movers across the U.S. and Canada.
The business now sits inside U-Haul Holding Company, a structure that also includes related operations such as Amerco Real Estate, which acquires and develops properties for conversion to storage and rental centers, and RepWest Insurance, which offers protection plans tied to U-Haul rentals. Another affiliate, Oxford Life Insurance, focuses on life and annuity products and also helps administer the U-Haul Investors Club, where individuals can invest in securities backed by U-Haul equipment. Together, these entities support the core moving and storage brand while giving the group a broader footprint in real estate and insurance.
U-Haul has become a fixture of North American life. Its trucks and trailers, often decorated with state- and province-themed “supergraphics,” are a familiar sight on highways and in neighborhoods, to the point where the brand name is sometimes used generically for rental moving trucks. The company has also leaned into its role in everyday logistics, from seasonal support for parcel carriers to disaster-relief storage programs for communities hit by storms or fires. Through its combination of a recognizable brand, a dense dealer and location network, and a focus on self-service moving, U-Haul Holding Company has carved out a durable place in the moving and storage landscape.