How to Relocate Your Business Successfully

There are many reasons why you may decide to relocate your business. Perhaps one of the most common ones in recent years is the switch to remote working.

The global pandemic saw a massive increase in remote work, and many of those remote workers have yet to return to the workplace.

Relocating could also be to be closer to your customer base, reduce manufacturing costs, or even change state and benefit from lower business tax. You’re certainly not alone. Statistics suggest that 90% of manufacturing businesses have relocated all or some of their production lines.

Whatever the reason, if you want to successfully relocate your business it’s essential to follow the right steps.

Find Your New Premises

This seems obvious, but before you do anything you’ll want to decide on where you want to relocate to and find the right premises.

Ideally, you’ll find a location that needs minimal work to get you up and running. This will make the transition easier.

However, you may have decided it’s time to invest in custom premises. In this case, you’ll need to create a plan of what the building should look like, how it’s laid out, and what features are essential. It will be necessary to google “concrete pumping near me” and then find a good architect.

As part of the locating premises stage, you should also check on local laws and regulations. This is especially important if you’re moving state. Your business must comply.

Communicate With Staff

All employees need to know what is happening, even those that work remotely. Employees must be given the opportunity to relocate with you. That means deciding on what relocation packages are on offer. At the least, you’ll need to provide support.

Remote employees will need to know where the premises are and visit them. It will help them feel connected to the business, even if they never need to come in.

Make sure your employees know why the business is relocating and the benefits the move provides to them and the business. It will help them see the move positively and this will help it go smoothly.

Check or Establish Infrastructure

All businesses need reliable IT systems. You may also need specific infrastructure for your business. It’s important to evaluate what you need and create a plan to cover the move. Your aim is to have no, or minimal downtime. After all, downtime can cost you customers.

Part of this step will involve deciding whether to get the new location up and running before anything is moved.

Hire Professional Movers

Suddath has a vast amount of experience moving individuals and businesses. We can handle national and international moves.

The best approach is to speak to us early. We can identify priority items, fragile equipment, and arrange the correct packaging and transportation for them. We’ll even give you a valuable moving out-of-state checklist, if applicable.

Speak to Suppliers

You should already have a good supplier relationship. It’s important not to damage this when relocating.

Speak to your suppliers and clients as early as possible. Advise them of your impending move, how you’ll be handling their accounts, and what you need from them.

Make sure all suppliers and clients know your business will continue to produce goods/services without interruption. Keeping the lines of communication open through the moving stage is essential to maintaining these good relationships.

They may even be able to help with your move.

Refresh Your Marketing

Relocating is a great opportunity to refresh your marketing strategy. Update your logo and restyle your online presence. Provided you keep existing customers in the loop it won’t damage established relationships.

However, it can be a great way to attract new business and prove that the relocation was a good idea.

Start by talking about the relocation on social media. It’s a great way to get people interested in what you’re doing. This positivity can be used to help boost awareness and appreciation for your impending move.

Identify Risk

Relocating a business carries risk. In general, the longer you’ve been established in one place the higher the risk. It’s important you spend time thinking about the risks.

In effect, you want to think about everything that could go wrong and come up with a plan if it does go wrong. Record everything. Then, if there is an issue, you’ll know exactly what to do to minimize damage to the business, clients, and suppliers.

Summing Up

Relocating a business is challenging. There are many factors to consider. Overlooking even one can have a seriously detrimental effect on your future operations.

That’s why, you need to carefully plan each stage of the relocation. You also need to get the right support, that’s professional movers, your financial backers, and a legal team that understands the implications of your move.

That almost guarantees it will be a success.