Businesses relocate for a whole range of reasons. You might be looking to make yourself more accessible to customers and workers; you might be looking to downsize your premises and accommodate a more remote workforce; you might simply be expanding so quickly that larger premises are required to account for your business growth.
Relocation can be an exciting and lucrative business opportunity, but you need to ensure that the transition period runs as smoothly as possible. There are several aspects worth bearing in mind to give yourself the best chance of a successful relocation.
People
You’ll want to give all of your staff as much notice as possible of the move, and ideally involve them in the decision in the first place. Give them as many options as you can regarding arrangements such as hybrid working. Anything you can do to minimise the disruption of a move to your staff and help retention is worthwhile.
Naturally, your customers also need to be kept informed of your plans to move. Ensure communication with your client base is clear and consistent throughout the transition process. You may even look at the move as an opportunity for rebranding and changing your marketing offer, as relocating may bring with it new regions and client bases for you to invest in to.
Finances
Relocation can have an effect on your productivity and profitability in the short term. Time and resources allocated to moving things from one place to another, after all, cannot be allocated to selling things. Ensure you establish a preliminary budget for the move, but prepare a contingency plan. You might look to borrow money through a short term business loan, just to ease the transition and to help with any unforeseen expenses. If you are able to forecast the impact that the move will have on your sales, you might then be better prepared to deal with it.
Technology
If your business is heavily reliant on technology, then it will be vital that you have all of your computer systems operational as early as possible, and that you have transition arrangements in place to ensure uninterrupted service. This might mean drafting in specialist help to oversee the technical aspects of the move.
Legal and logistics
You should seek to ensure that your premises meet the required health and safety standards, and that your business’ new premises are officially registered with the relevant authorities. Of particular concern are your insurers, as any policy might be invalidated by an unapproved move. You might also look into inserting a mobility clause into the contracts of valued employees.
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