Everyone knows that location is key when you’re shopping for commercial real estate.
Whether you’re simply seeking an office for rent or you’re hunting for commercial land for sale, there’s a lot that goes into determining the ideal location for your particular type of business.
Assess Your Needs
Absolutely every real estate transaction should start with a hard and thorough assessment of your particular needs. Before you look at the demographics or rental prices in an area, you’ll need to figure out what kind of customers you’re going to be attracting. Obviously, if you’re running a retail boutique, restaurant or even a car wash, you’ll want to choose an area with great exposure, but not everyone needs to spend top dollar for these locations.
For example, a company that does service work or does business exclusively online can realize significant savings by choosing a more obscure location. As long as your company is compatible with the zoning in the area you’re considering, you may find that your business is just as successful in a cheaper spot like an older industrial area or in a less prestigious office building.
Find Your Demographic
If you do happen to be one of those businesses whose location needs to be highly accessible to their customers, it’s important that you know your demographic well before you start the hunt for commercial real estate. Choosing a location that’s far away from your target market can mean the end of business as you know it and a huge hit to the customer base of well-established companies.
Instead, figure out where your customers live, shop and work, then build your new location right next door. The more convenient your location, the more likely your ideal customers will stop in. Even if you’ve not got the budget to park near your competition, you might still be able to capture your customers by picking land for sale near places your customers are likely to be, like large gyms, schools or childcare facilities.
Accessing Labor
Although getting customers through the door is vital, it’s all for naught if you have no employees. Before setting down roots, it’s important to examine the local labor force. Are there enough people with the skill sets you need available or will you have to train them from the ground up? Can your entry-level employees easily make it to work each day or are there serious limitations on the types of public transit that many young employees utilize?
You’ll certainly find some employees who can travel to wherever you locate, but ensuring that your location is convenient for your workers will help them remain reliable no matter what kind of surprises strike.
Choosing the right location for your business isn’t rocket science, but it does require a great balancing act between your needs and those of your customers and employees. When you have all three areas in balance, there’s no limit to what your business can do.