Ready To Move Your Growing Small Business?

One of the most exciting things about being a small business owner is, without a doubt, being able to watch your business grow and expand. As you hire more employees and take on more operations, you will undoubtedly require more space. It’s not uncommon, in fact, for small businesses to change locales frequently, especially during the initial startup phase. The trick, particularly in an uncertain real estate market, is to estimate the growth of your business during the duration of your lease, since you don’t want to pay for space that you may not use for years, but you also don’t want to be forced into another move before your lease expires. Here are some tips to help you select the right location for your growing small business.

1. Location, Location, Location: This is a clichéd saying in real estate for a reason: it works. Your clients may not be as happy with your current, or proposed new location as you are. Depending on the type of business that you own, you should consider asking for their input via a survey, about whether their needs would be better served by a move to a particular area of town. Regardless of the type of business you operate, it never hurts to research and discover where the people in your desired demographic actually live and work, since convenience is one of the first things that people pay attention to when it comes to doing business.

2. Consider Commute Time: Choosing a location near a highway or public transportation (or both) is a smart move, both in terms of worker productivity as well as morning morale. Not only will you be able to reduce the number of times that your employees are late for legitimate, traffic related reasons, you will also be able to decrease their commute time, which they will be grateful for.

3. Stick Close To Talent: If your company needs to hire employees with specialized education, choosing a location near a University with a strong program of study in the desired field only makes sense. To find Universities and other institutions of higher learning with large concentrations of potential employees possessing the skills that you need, you can simply check with the Bureau of Labor statistics online. Not only will it will be easier to find qualified employees, but you will also have the assurance that they are informed as to the latest trends, methods, and changes of and to their chosen field.

4. Stay Close To The Competition: While it may not seem like a good idea to do business next to a competitor, depending on your industry, it may actually be a smart choice. It makes it easy for potential customers to comparison shop and see that your business offers the most for their money, and if your office is near businesses in similar industries, they may just refer some business to you, and vice versa.

5. Spend More If Necessary: Your business may not need to invest in primary office space, but if you do, make sure that spend the money required. If you work with big name corporate clients, especially if they will be visiting your frequently, or if yu need your image to reflect your expertise, don’t scrimp on necessary aesthetically pleasing details. Just make sure, of course that you generate enough sales to pay for it all. Companies in the manufacturing industry should pay no more than 20 percent of gross sales for rent, while service business, thanks to a lower overhead, can go up to 30 percent.

6. Be Flexible: In a soft real estate market, your landlord may be more willing to negotiate. If so, be sure to ask for both the right to cancel your lease with a specified amount of notice, and the freedom to sub lease the space if you so choose. If you prefer to “test drive” a location, you should look for a business that specializes in providing short term space. Some of these firms allow you to lease a few cubicles for a month or more at a time, which gives you the opportunity to try out a new space before you commit to it for the long term.

If you are lucky enough to have raised funding from venture capitalists or other investors, you may have another option. It isn’t uncommon for investors with deep pockets to rent spaces in their offices to startups included in their portfolios.

It is exciting and fulfilling to watch your small start up business grow and expand, just be sure that when it comes time to move, you do so with careful planning and forethought. Be sure that you have enough room to grow, that your location is desirable for your employees, your customers, and for you, and that the price is one that you can afford, and you will be well on your way to continued small business success.