Guy Middlebrooks
About Guy Middlebrooks
Guy Middlebrooks is Executive Vice President of Operations at CubeSmart, responsible for day-to-day operations across 1,500+ stores and leading field operations, third-party management, and store transitions; he joined CubeSmart (then U-Store-It) in 2006 as a District Manager and progressed through Director and VP roles before leading Third Party Management and being promoted to EVP Operations in 2025 . Prior to CubeSmart, he spent ~18 years at Winn-Dixie (progressing to District Manager) and then served as a Regional Manager at Dollar General, experience he has credited for shaping his operations leadership in self-storage . As context for pay-for-performance alignment at CubeSmart, the company’s PVP table shows 2020–2024 Company TSR of $111.67 → $194.96 → $143.66 → $173.12 → $165.28 and FFO per share (as adjusted) of $1.72 → $2.11 → $2.53 → $2.68 → $2.63, indicating multi-year value creation despite volatility .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| CubeSmart (U-Store-It/CubeSmart) | Executive Vice President, Operations | 2025–present | Leads field operations, third-party management, and store transitions across >1,500 stores . |
| CubeSmart | Senior Vice President, Third Party Management | ~2021–2025 | Helped “shape industry-leading management platform” and grew managed portfolio; portfolio expanded from ~600 stores in 2019 to >900 by end of 2024 under the third-party team’s stewardship |
| CubeSmart | Vice President/Director/DM (Operations) | 2006–2021 | Built strong field teams; drove operating results; promoted Dec 2008 to Director of Operations; subsequent VP roles . |
| Dollar General | Regional Manager | ~2003–2005 | Retail multi-unit leadership; operational rigor transferable to storage . |
| Winn-Dixie Stores | Store/District Manager | ~1984–2002 | Retail operations and customer-experience foundation; progressed to district leadership . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Self Storage Association (SSA) | Board member (first REIT representative) | ~circa 2010s | Opened lines of communication between REITs and smaller operators; industry coordination . |
| New York Self Storage Association (NYSSA) | Board member | Current | Regional industry leadership; advocacy and best practices . |
Fixed Compensation
- Not disclosed for Middlebrooks in the 2025 proxy, as he is not listed among Named Executive Officers (NEOs); NEOs disclosed are CEO, CFO, COO, CLO, and CHRO .
Performance Compensation
- Annual incentive program design (company-wide for NEOs): 70% financial metrics, 20% strategic goals/external growth, 10% individual goals; payout curve: 50% threshold, 100% target, 200% maximum .
- Long-term incentives (company program for NEOs): mix of restricted shares, relative TSR-based performance units, and stock options; recent performance units (granted 2022) paid at 134.2% of target on 59th percentile TSR, illustrating linkage to shareholder returns .
Note: The proxy does not itemize Middlebrooks’ specific targets or payouts; details above reflect the company’s executive plan design and results disclosure for NEOs .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Officer share ownership guidelines: Executive Vice Presidents at 2.25x base salary; other NEOs at 3x; CEO at 5x; unvested RSUs/PSUs and unexercised options do not count. Board determined in Feb 2024 that NEOs with requisite service met/exceeded guidelines .
- Hedging and pledging prohibition: Officers (including EVP level) are prohibited from hedging and from pledging company securities, reducing misalignment and leverage risk .
- Clawback: Dodd-Frank compliant policy requires reimbursement of incentive compensation erroneously awarded based on restated financials for prior three years, regardless of fault .
Employment Terms
- Company employs a broad Executive Severance Plan (ESP) for eligible senior executives; individual employment agreements were terminated when ESP became effective in 2017 . If Middlebrooks is a designated participant, key terms (by tier) apply as below.
| Scenario | Cash severance multiple | Bonus treatment | Equity treatment | Benefits/Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Involuntary termination without cause / resignation for good reason (outside CIC protection period) | CEO: 2.0x; Tier II/Tier III: 1.5x of (base + average/target annual incentive) paid over 24 months (CEO) or 18 months (others) | Pro-rata annual incentive based on actual performance and days employed | Time-based awards continue vesting per schedules; performance awards vest pro-rata based on actual performance and service | COBRA reimbursement up to 18 months (tax-adjusted lump equivalent in proxy estimate); release and restrictive covenants required . |
| Qualifying termination within CIC protection window (3 months before to 2 years after CIC) | CEO: 3.0x; Tier II: 2.5x; Tier III: 2.0x, paid in lump sum | Pro-rata annual incentive based on greater of actual or target for the year, per plan design | As of immediately prior to CIC: time-based vests in full; performance-vested vests at greater of target or actual; options may be net-exercised; or awards assumed/continued; if not, acceleration applies | COBRA reimbursement up to 24 months; vehicle allowance for up to 24 months in CIC termination; no 280G gross-up—payments cut to avoid excise tax if more favorable after-tax . |
| Death/Disability | Pro-rata annual incentive (actual performance) | Time-based awards accelerate; performance awards vest at target | — |
- Non-compete and non-solicit: To receive severance, executives must execute restrictive covenants; non-compete is 12 months for Tier II/III (36 months CEO) across U.S. self-storage activities; includes non-solicit of employees/customers .
- Retirement vesting: Equity award agreements provide continued vesting upon retirement at age 60+ with 10 years of service, subject to notice and 24-month restrictive covenant agreement .
Investment Implications
- Continuity and bench strength: Promotion of Middlebrooks to EVP Ops alongside the orderly COO retirement reduces execution risk; he has deep institutional knowledge from 19 years at CubeSmart and direct stewardship of third-party management growth, supporting operational consistency and service standards .
- Alignment safeguards: Anti-hedging/pledging, rigorous clawback, and robust ownership guidelines (2.25x salary for EVPs) promote alignment and reduce downside agency risk even for non-NEO officers .
- Transparency gap: As a non-NEO, Middlebrooks’ exact salary/bonus/award values and personal beneficial ownership are not disclosed in the proxy, limiting direct pay-for-performance and insider-selling analysis; investors should monitor Form 4 filings for any material trading activity and future proxies for potential NEO inclusion .
- CIC/Severance structure: ESP’s double-trigger CIC cash and equity vesting at target/greater-of-target protects management continuity but could be dilutive in a sale; absence of 280G gross-up is shareholder-friendly .
Recent leadership disclosures: CubeSmart announced leadership changes in Jan 2025 noting Middlebrooks’ promotion to EVP Operations tied to the COO’s retirement; investor-day materials in 1H/3Q 2025 list him as EVP Operations on the executive roster .
Supporting Company Performance Context
| Metric | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company TSR – value of $100 investment | $111.67 | $194.96 | $143.66 | $173.12 | $165.28 |
| FFO per share, as adjusted | $1.72 | $2.11 | $2.53 | $2.68 | $2.63 |
| Net Income (thousands) | $167,611 | $230,813 | $292,472 | $412,435 | $391,885 |
Notes on Policies Relevant to Retention and Risk
- Say-on-pay support remained high (94% in 2024; 3-year average 93%), suggesting investor acceptance of the compensation framework .
- Compensation Committee utilizes independent consultants (FW Cook historically; Ferguson Partners since 2024) and peer benchmarking; 2025 peer group adjusted to include sector-relevant comparators (e.g., Americold, NSA, Public Storage) .
- Equity plan updated in 2025 to extend term and add 5,000,000 shares to reserve; all awards subject to clawback; change-in-control provisions allow acceleration/settlement consistent with plan terms .
References for biography and role:
- CubeSmart management team bio page for Middlebrooks .
- Executive listings in 2025 company presentations/8-K investor materials .
- Leadership changes coverage (promotion to EVP Operations) .
- Career background features .