LAKEVILLE — Pals since kindergarten, this friendship means business.

Eric Green and Todd Ruderman met before first grade in their hometown of Lynnfield. Decades later, their friendship endures and has morphed into a business partnership as well.

Ruderman owns 31 locations of Value Store It Self-Storage, a business that provides storage units of varying sizes. 

For his latest location in Lakeville, he brought in lifelong friend Green as partner and general manager.

A ribbon cutting Friday, Sept. 15 served as the official opening for the new storage facility at 15 Main St. The site has actually been operating for about three months.

The event was organized by the Cranberry Country Chamber of Commerce. “The chamber has been fantastic,’’ Green said.

“We love being in Lakeville,’’ he said.

The facility features storage units of various sizes, from closet equivalents to spaces large enough to accommodate cars, which comes in handy for people to store their sports vehicles for the winter, he said.

People rent storage units for a variety of reasons, he said. “People do have a lot of stuff these days,’’ he said. 

Some customers are downsizing or in a transitional period, such as going through a divorce, and need a place to store their belongings until they get back on their feet.

For other clients, the units serve as a space for summer items in the winter, and vice versa. This is particularly popular, he said, with people who reside in apartments, condos or other living arrangements with limited storage. 

Others rent the storage units to declutter their homes when they are on the real estate market and want their homes to look as spacious as possible, he said. 

Customers have their own security codes and can access the building from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day. Twenty-seven security cameras are located throughout the facility. “Security for the customer, security for the business, those things are really important.’’ 

The business is staffed seven days a week, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday. 

He takes pride in the “spotless’’ conditions of all three floors. They also provide a conference room with Wi-Fi access and free water and coffee for all customers.

The business sells a variety of moving products, such as tape and boxes, and serves as an authorized U-Haul dealer, with rental vehicles available on site. 

He declines to provide exact numbers of units that have been rented so far, but said the business is “slightly ahead of schedule’’ for projected sales.

“This is a fantastic location on Main Street’’ with significant visibility, he said. “The community is great.’’