There are numerous reasons for moving business premises. You might need to expand to a larger location, move to a place with better foot traffic, or you may need to cut costs by finding a cheaper place to rent or purchase.

No matter why you’re moving your business, the fact remains that this can be incredibly disruptive to your company and may cause you to lose profits as well as take on extra costs. Often, the change is worth it, but it’s important to mitigate these problems.

Moving Business Premises Without Sacrificing Profits

1. Planning the Move

Much like a house move, you shouldn’t just blindly jump into the move to a new property. As well as the costs of buying or renting somewhere new, there will be other costs to consider like the cost of hiring moving companies, paying employees during the move, and the fact that your company will be operating without earning a profit.

You might be unable to trade during the moving process, so the quicker it’s over, the better it will be for everyone. Once you’re physically moved in, you also need to consider the time it takes to settle in and decorate the new work premises, especially if you need to set it up for an office or a retail space.

Careful planning will cut down on these costs as well as the time it takes to actually put them into place. Think of it as a project where your company is the client and, if appropriate, ask your employees to help.

2. Find the Right Location

When moving business premises, the initial and crucial step involves ensuring the new location aligns with your operational requirements. You need to check your budget and, as well as the initial costs of buying or renting, you should also think about additional costs like utilities and other running and maintenance costs.

Next, consider how the new location will impact your customers and your employees. Ideally, it should be convenient for everyone, but this includes nearby parking and commutes. If your employees already travel in, how much will the move add to their journey.

You may need to think about hiring new employees closer to your new location, especially if it’s larger and will need more workers anyway.

The right location can make or break your business, so bear these factors in mind while balancing the cost of the move.

3. Selling Your Old Location

Finally, if you own the current location, you should think about selling it to another company. If you’re simply outgrowing the older location, you should be able to find a buyer fairly easily, especially if they’re in a similar industry.

Commercial real estate services can be incredibly helpful when buying, renting, selling, or leasing commercial properties, so be sure to get in touch to find out the best ways to go about this.

Leasing might work out as more effective in the lost run, as the rent profits can help to fund your new commercial property while also paying for itself. But make sure to balance these costs with the inconvenience of having to also manage the property and maintain it as a landlord.

4. Preparing Your Employees

Your employees will be impacted by a move, especially if they have to travel into work. Their commute might be lengthened and, if they drive into work, they might need to find a new parking space. If they use public transport, they may need to work out a new route to get into work on time.

The more time you give your employees to prepare for the change, the more quickly they will settle in. Don’t just dump the move on them as a surprise.

You should also be more flexible if you’re making a major change to their workday. They might be late to start with, especially if they aren’t used to traffic or certain parking lots. If you trust them, they will have a reason to trust you as well.

5. Customer Transparency

When moving business premises, it’s crucial to inform your employees about the transition. Additionally, keeping your customers informed is a good strategy. Depending on where your new location is, you might be able to retain many of your old customers and gain new ones.

Make sure your customers know when the move will be and where your new location will be, so they aren’t surprised or inconvenienced when your business is closed. You can then host an opening event with discounts to encourage new and returning customers to use your services.