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Consider the surrounding community
When hunting for a business site, entrepreneurs should consider whether a given community is actively seeking new companies. Contact the local economic development agency to learn about possible incentives, which could include financial support for tenant improvements, municipal programs giving preference to area businesses or local tax and planning department waivers.
Economic development consultant Justin Erickson advised entrepreneurs to lock down incentives prior to signing a lease or making a commitment as “communities sometimes do not follow through with promised incentives once a company has signed a lease or bought a building.”
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Beware of problem locations
Some locations are great. Others are miserable. Consider the revolving restaurant site, a spot that’s home to a new restaurant every six months: Each new owner believes that he or she has the secret sauce to make the site work only to call it quits after a short stretch. The fact is, not all locations are the same. Regardless of the product, service or business plan, some locations are simply bad for business.
“If you find yourself trying to decide between a better location at a higher rent versus a lesser location for a lower rent my advice is go for the better location,” said commercial lease consultant Dale Willerton. “When I’m consulting to tenants and doing site selection my job isn’t to find the cheapest location it’s to select a site that will help the tenant maximize sales.”
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Identify target customers
Entrepreneurs must carefully consider their target clients when developing a business plan. Then they should seek locations abundant with this type and ensure that these areas can provide employees with the needed skills.
“Estimate the market size and the customers’ purchasing power in the primary area,” Morato said. “Driving or walking time to the location should be studied. Also, examine the vehicular and traffic flow and take note of physical barriers and traffic limitations or detours.”
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Pay a fair price
The ideal location will rarely be one with the lowest price tag. Entrepreneurs should be realistic and ready to pay for a good site. An ideal location will contribute toward the enterprise’s success. A poor one will result in rapid closure. Good locations are not cheap. A business plan should include a realistic projection of the costs involved.
“It may cost us more to do business here, and there are definitely some handicaps to doing business here, but there is a tremendous upside to being near your customers,” said Paul Beach, an executive who runs a company that makes lithium-ion batteries in California.
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Know the competition
Very rarely will a business be the only game in town. Entrepreneurs must assess the competition and be certain there’s enough business to go around. If a given community is already saturated with similar businesses, consider a new location. Those determined to compete in a tight market must offer a product or service sufficiently game changing to draw enough business to make the operation viable.
“Identifying the competition in a market helps determine if your business idea is feasible,” according to the Iowa State University website. “A competitive assessment also directs how a product/service should be positioned.” This analysis will determine if the company can gain a competitive edge by offering something the existing competition doesn’t.
