Moving our retail premises up the road

[Dan324st]

Hi all.
Just wanted to hear some different thoughts on our current situation .
We are thinking about moving our pet supplies business from the lower end of our street to the middle, as a location has come up with much more room for the same price we are currently paying.
Things are however, moving faster than expected, and we have a few concerns as to whether this small move will effect business.
We are currently located on the sunny side of the street next to a busy charity shop with a large continuous awning outside, (we always seem busy when it rains, when you might expect to be quiet)
The new potential shop is much bigger and has a way nicer window. However there is no running shelter on that side of the street, and the shop is sandwiched between a funeral business and a pub.
Although there is no obvious reason our existing customers couldn't walk a whole minute up the road to our new location. I jave recently read 'why we buy' by Pack Underhill... which has made me take far more note on these small differences, and more concerned that this small move could have a bad effect on business.
Would love to know people's thoughts/similar experiences?
Thanks for reading.
Dan

 

[Paul Norman]

Without walking the street, it is hard to say. But there are some important factors to understand.

1. Walk by traffic. Is that different at the new premises for some reason?
2. The pub. I get a lot of stick about this, but the fact is that the nature of the pub is going to impact on you. What kind of clientele does the pub attract? And how many.

 

[Dan324st]

Thanks @Paul Norman the pub is relatively quiet during the day however , like most pubs it has a few people that spend most their day there. I would say the current side of the street is a little busier however, figured that only would make our signage more clear and visible at the new shop. The street as a whole is not mega busy, the new shop is situated roughly in the centre of the street, only about 8 shops up (I can see it from my position at the counter now)

 

[BristolBiz]

We moved a few years back and held our breath.

Before you leap, is it worth going back and talking to your current landlord? They may wish to keep a good tenant at a lower rent, rather than risk a long term empty unit.

 

[Dan324st]

Hi @BristolBiz Yes we have considered haggling with our current landlord, but ultimately we are looking to expand our stock and can't neatly fit any more in here, so not sure it would be the best move to stay.
How did your move go? Did you move far from where you were?

 

[Mark T Jones]

I’m no expert here, but my first thought would be that pet supplies is more of a destination than a walk by business?

 

[TomJ83]

I think your current location is beneficial as it's next to a busy charity shop. So the foot traffic would be relatively high. The other location would be quite quiet.

 

[Dan324st]

@Mark T Jones do you mean by this that our location should make little difference, as people will come either way?
We actually gave up on the idea of the new shop a little while ago, and now with less than a month to go on our current lease. We have been made a new offer and are once again re-considering .
Very stressfull, trying to make the decision in a small amount of time!

 

[Mr D]

As in all commercial renting, get the lease checked over by a commercial solicitor. Make sure you aren't signing up to make matters a lot worse.

 

[MOIC]

. . . ultimately we are looking to expand our stock and can't neatly fit any more in here

Have you answered the question with the above quote?

When moving premises, there will always be pros and cons, however if you need a larger space, then that must be the overriding factor.

Are there any other potential sites your are considering?

If a move has to be made to facilitate expansion, choose the best currently available, or negotiate your current lease to have a break clause in 1 or 2 years to give you time to find a 'better' size and location.