One way or another, you might find yourself in a scenario where you have to move your business. Maybe you find a more lucrative market elsewhere, need more room for expansion or find a similar setup for a considerably smaller rent. Either way, the importance of doing it efficiently can’t be stressed enough. Why? Well, if not done right, your business will suffer, seeing as how you’ll lose money on inefficient solutions and prolong the downtime in your operations. Other than this, the entire procedure is quite stressful, especially when things start going south. Here are six tips to help you avoid this.
Know why you’re moving
The first thing you need to do is figure out why you’re moving. This is because such a thing may affect the place you choose to move to. If there is any additional work that you have to do on the building (in terms of equipment and building specifics), handle this right now because it’s a lot more convenient. Either way, setting your goals right away will ensure much better results.
Give yourself enough time
Giving yourself enough time is quite important for three reasons. First of all, there are so many options for you to consider and so many choices to make. By having more time to think it through, you’ll increase the odds of making the right choice. Second, planning takes time. Sure, you might be skeptical of the time that it will take you to make a simple to-do list, however, as the time goes by, you’ll remember new items to add to the list. Finally, having enough time will reduce the amount of stress that you feel by a considerable amount.
Letting everyone know
The next thing worth keeping in mind is that it doesn’t affect just you. Your landlord needs to know as soon as possible so that they can start looking for a new tenant. Your suppliers also need to be notified in order to avoid delivering to the wrong location. Employees are at the very top of the list of people who need to know. First of all, this will change their commute, while some of them will be reluctant to move and leave your company. Finally, if you’re running a retail store or a business in the hospitality industry, your location is a crucial part of your brand. You need to let your customer know of this change.
Look for professionals
Another thing you should consider is hiring professional movers. This is simpler, quicker and reduces the amount of stress that you’ll experience during the process. However, it’s also more expensive, which is why this option isn’t used by the majority of people. Either way, you’ll still have to look for truck rentals. Just keep in mind that loading these trucks and loading them without damaging anything in the process are not one and the same thing.
Try to reduce the downtime
Downtime is a known productivity killer, seeing as how it can allow your employees to break their routine. It might take some time for them to reach their full productivity, later on, however, this is just the tip of the iceberg of all the problems that you’re facing this way. Downtime also doesn’t allow you to generate profit, which puts your business in a financially disadvantageous situation. The longer your downtime lasts, the more you’re at the loss. Not to mention that while you’re out, your customers might look for alternatives and refuse to return later when you’re, once again, operational.
Cut any loose ends
Lastly, you have to leave the clean slate behind, which implies that you should pay your debts (the last rent and your last utility bill), as well as leave the place as you’ve found it. This might require you to hire a professional cleaning crew and outsource this task. Finally, let everyone who might stop by know that you’re moving. Cancel your subscriptions, change your contact info on social media and website and (even though we’ve already mentioned this) talk to your suppliers and partners.
Finally, it’s important that we mention that sometimes relocation is a much bigger change. As we’ve said already, in the hospitality industry, it might be an essential part of your brand, which is why a relocation might mean that you have to start over with your branding efforts. In this particular scenario, you’re in for a much bigger project than what was described above. This is why it’s an even bigger priority that you determine whether it’s really worth it.
