Your business has been running for awhile, and you’ve just been able to acquire a very large business account. You need more workers, and in turn, more space so you can meet the demands of the new account. retail space isn’t easy to come by because of how many businesses succeed and fail each year. The one’s that tend to exceed have an office leasing and the ability to advertise their product in a way that makes them separate from their competition.
From planning and budgeting to facilities maintenance and ongoing operations, once you have entered an agreement with your commercial real estate agent, you want to make sure that each detail, whether big or small from site selection, rent rates, landlord concessions, parking and your ongoing operating expenses are discussed. A quality commercial real estate agent will help you with all this including connections with paint and carpeting improvements as well as office relocation assistance.
Landlords are concerned with the decline in tenant sales- everyone is affected and owners are doing their best to keep their retailers and businesses there. New tenants will no doubt have the upper hand in negotiations with landlords and with commercial real estate agents, which can result in rent reductions and other perks for new businesses. With more attractive options becoming available all the time, forecasters believe that overtime, the market will reverse itself and with so many people taking advantage of attractive lease terms, potential tenants will correct the supply and demand discrepancy.
The internet is vast but there are millions of other businesses trying to get their product out there and selling just like you. You can advertise in your local area, but that’s a very small portion considering the amount of people living in the United States. What you’re going to be relying is a marketing campaign savvy to those consumers you wish to target and service that carries over word of mouth. People can get a certain product anywhere, but they come to your store for the service and the atmosphere. Don’t forget this crucial fact when shopping for retail space.
As business begins to grow you will find yourself needing more space to hold the amount of customers foaming for your product. It is at this time where you don’t need to worry so much about how much space you have and how much it will cost because of how much money you’ve made. Expanding your business practice elsewhere may be a more beneficial venture than expanding your space. You can make a little more profit with small chains around the nation than a few large retail store.
About the author: Jason Ausmus is a freelance content specialist. For more information regarding retail spaceor office leasing, please visit Royal Commercial.
Posts Tagged ‘retail space’
How to Identify the Amount of Space You Need After Rapid Expansion
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010The Unwritten Rules of Office Space
Thursday, January 28th, 2010You’ve just conceived an idea for your new business. You know why product you want to sell, you have employees lined up. All that’s left is finding an adequate building to be able to advertise and sell your entire product line. retail space isn’t easy to come by because of how many businesses succeed and fail each year. The one’s that tend to exceed have an office leasing and the ability to advertise their product in a way that makes them separate from their competition.
You need to look for space that able to provide you enough shelf space to advertise the product as well as enough space for your customers to conveniently and comfortably walk through the aisles to view them. Not a lot of people like to be crowded together trying to find the product they were searching for. They become claustrophobic and feel a need to get out of the store before buying anything. The importance in the amount of space you allow in unparallel to the amount inventory you have displayed. It won’t matter how much product you have out if everyone’s fleeing the store because of how uncomfortable they are.
The amount of space you decide to buy is of course proportionate to the amount of money you want to spend. If you spend all of your money on the largest space available with nothing to fall back on in case business is slow at first, you will find yourself closing the store down before it even began and your dream lost. No business started out a success. If you believe the product you’re selling will sell immediately than ask yourself, “How will people know about the product”?
The internet is vast but there are millions of other businesses trying to get their product out there and selling just like you. You can advertise in your local area, but that’s a very small portion considering the amount of people living in the United States. What you’re going to be relying is a marketing campaign savvy to those consumers you wish to target and service that carries over word of mouth. People can get a certain product anywhere, but they come to your store for the service and the atmosphere. Don’t forget this crucial fact when shopping for retail space.
As business begins to grow you will find yourself needing more space to hold the amount of customers foaming for your product. It is at this time where you don’t need to worry so much about how much space you have and how much it will cost because of how much money you’ve made. Expanding your business practice elsewhere may be a more beneficial venture than expanding your space. You can make a little more profit with small chains around the nation than a few large retail store.
About the author: Jason Ausmus is a web content producer for Innuity. For more information regarding retail space or office leasing, contact Royal Commercial
How To Find Creative Ways to Fill Space You Aren’t Yet Using
Thursday, January 14th, 2010It’s not an uncommon site. Driving past strip malls or walking through the mall and seeing the empty retail space. Office leasing and corporate real estate is obviously changing. The tactics that commercial real estate agents are using to fill their space is definitely changing. During the economic and real estate boom a couple years ago, the deals that are being forged today would never have been considered.
One way that retail space is being filled is with nonprofit organizations and a variety of other such businesses – like schools, day care centers, gyms and/or theatre groups. The main factor that spaces will consider is the amount of traffic that can be brought to the area with the group involved. With a theatre group or maybe even a daycare there is going to be a variety of people brought to the location that may not have been in the area otherwise.
Traffic control is key. One of the great things about retail space is that it is always centrally located or at least conveniently located. This is the great way to get businesses in because they will be able to build themselves in a good location and attract the customers they are hoping to attract. It will not only be a great option for the business but it is also a win for the shopping center as they are going to be changing their image and drawing people in with a new tactic.
It’s an unfortunate reality that many larger retail outlets have gone out of business lately and have left some giant buildings behind. Without using these buildings they are just left to sit as an eyesore as consumers drive by day after day. Plus, some retailers that were thinking about expanding their business or perhaps renovating have put a hold on those projects in order to save some money. Space that they may have originally hoped to expand into has been left empty as a result.
Some shopping centers are also trying out different marketing concepts to test the water for future businesses. For example, smaller businesses, or spinoffs are starting up to see if they can survive and bring in new business. One example could be a Holiday specific spin on a party store. This might occupy a space for a short time and then be replaced a few months later with another type of business. This has been a successful way for retailers to bridge the gap and bring in some additional money.
Perhaps the economy has been a great way to get us unsettled and to make us consider our current lot in life. We all need a little stirring every once in awhile in order to come up with new and greater ideas. We can’t grow if we are standing still all the time. While it may feel like a difficult time and seem like the world is falling apart, we know that we can get through this thing one step at a time. By getting creative, utilizing exciting new marketing strategies and by trying something out of the box, retail space can thrive. Focus on bringing in customers not on your normal radar in order to continue to survive during this difficult time.
About the author: Jason Ausmus is a web content producer for Innuity. For more information regarding retail space or office leasing go to Royal Commercial
How to Improve Your Office Space
Thursday, January 7th, 2010Here are 10 things you can do to improve your home office space without going WAY over budget.
Think Green and Get Some Plants!
Bring life to your office by adding life! A bit of greenery can lift a room and make it a much more pleasant retail space. Not only will plants add more color to your office, they will increase the oxygen in your office and provide an enticing ambiance.
Hide the Wires
Unfortunately, wires are an unsightly necessity of the office world. While you might be able to get a wireless mouse, keyboard and even internet, you simply can’t escape power cords. To tidy up your wires- look to these options:
• Bind Cords Together
Use a string or rubber band and bind the cords together at intervals so they are all in one place, sot scattered all over.
• Secure long running wires to walls
Instead of letting cords lay in the middle of the walkway, use clamps to stick wires to the walls.
Shop Discounted Stores, Online Deals or Thrift Stores For Great Steals on Furniture, Cubicles and Décor -including Paint
If you have ever scanned online discount stores, auction houses or craigslist’s in the “free section” you would be amazed at what you can find! Entire office furniture sets for less than half their retail price or free! Paint, doors, carpet and even art is all available online for complete deals. Thrift stores, garage sales and warehouse stores are all great places to look for great furniture at rates you can afford. Even though you can’t afford to get a new office space and furniture now, you can get pretty close to it and at least get what you need.
Initiate a Work Clean Up Party
So you cannot hire a cleaning service, painters or carpenters to help remodel your office but that doesn’t mean you can’t spruce things up with the resources you have at hand. Have a mandatory cleaning party at work. Pay your employees, provide lunch and drinks and crank up the music. Draw names for cleaning duties or separate yourself into cleaning teams. With some positive energy and dome good elbow grease, you can have a shiny new office space in no time!
Add an Employee Communication Area
Build morale and add some new décor. Placing a communication board in a common area of your office will improve morale, keep people informed and encourage involvement. When all of your employees are in the know with all of your company’s plans, people feel appreciated and important. Add an employee of the month club and post pictures of the staff!
There are in fact lots of things you can do to make your office space a better place to work. Visiting thrift stores and office supply stores to find ideas are great ways to get ideas. It’s possible that moving to a new office space isn’t foreseeable any time soon, or hiring an interior designer and since you are trying just to keep the lights on in the one you are currently occupying. There are plenty of things you can do to make due with your office space today while you while wait for things to change financially tomorrow.
About the author: Jason Ausmus is a web content producer for Innuity. For more information regarding office space or retail space go to Royal Commercial.
Crowded Cities Are a Small Problem if You Know Where to Look for New Space
Tuesday, December 15th, 2009As the economy turns up and down, the amount of space that you need to show off your merchandise is diminishing because of the fast paced consumer. As the amount of retail space lowers the cost of space lowers as well. Office leasing becomes an easier task because the amount of space has receded. It’s important to keep a simple mind when looking for an office.
Fast paced consumers in Kirkland, Wa want their product right when they walk in the door. They want low prices and the ability to get out of the building as quickly as possible so they can get on with their day. You want to enough space to be able to display what you’re selling, as well as enough aisle space to allow customers to browse comfortably.
Consumers are fast paced, but they need to be able to walk comfortably through the aisles of your store. You have no idea the amount of claustrophobia that one can feel while in a crowded area . It reaches to a point where they need to leave the building without buying anything at all. It’s beneficial to focus on a few products so that people can get in and out as quickly as possible.
The amount of space that you will need rises and falls with the state of the economy. As the economy rises, you want more space to sell more products and get more customers into the store. As the economy drops, the amount of space that you need will not be as much if you cannot afford to purchase the same amount you were able to sell previously.
When you’re first starting your business you should get enough space to expand upon when you become successful. Then when the economy declines, you can recede to the point that’s comfortable and stimulates with the economy. It’s important to be able to expand and recede because of the money you will save moving in and out of larger and smaller locations. Don’t buy too small and don’t buy too large or you’re just wasting money.
If business is doing exceptionally well, and the amount of space in your store is too little, you start to consider expanding to more space. While it’s a good idea, consider the amount of money it’s going to cost you, and the cost of the new lease. Can the success of your business withhold the rise and fall of the economy?
When you’re looking for new space make sure that you have a little more than needed so you can grow and decrease the amount of space so it fluctuates with the economy. As business begins to boom and the amount of space you need increases, office leasing for more space is intimate. A high possibility of growth in the economy is immanent, but you need to make up for when things turn bad.
About the author: Jason Ausmus is a web content producer for Innuity. For more information regarding space for retailor oleasing for offices, visit Royal Commercial.
How You Can Properly Select Your Office Space
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009You’ve just conceived an idea for your new business. You know why product you want to sell, you have employees lined up. All that’s left is finding an adequate building to be able to advertise and sell your entire product line. retail space isn’t easy to come by because of how many businesses succeed and fail each year. The one’s that tend to exceed have an office leasing and the ability to advertise their product in a way that makes them separate from their competition.
You need to look for space that able to provide you enough shelf space to advertise the product as well as enough space for your customers to conveniently and comfortably walk through the aisles to view them. Not a lot of people like to be crowded together trying to find the product they were searching for. They become claustrophobic and feel a need to get out of the store before buying anything. The importance in the amount of space you allow in unparallel to the amount inventory you have displayed. It won’t matter how much product you have out if everyone’s fleeing the store because of how uncomfortable they are.
The amount of space you decide to buy is of course proportionate to the amount of money you want to spend. If you spend all of your money on the largest space available with nothing to fall back on in case business is slow at first, you will find yourself closing the store down before it even began and your dream lost. No business started out a success. If you believe the product you’re selling will sell immediately than ask yourself, “How will people know about the product”?
The internet is vast but there are millions of other businesses trying to get their product out there and selling just like you. You can advertise in your local area, but that’s a very small portion considering the amount of people living in the United States. What you’re going to be relying is a marketing campaign savvy to those consumers you wish to target and service that carries over word of mouth. People can get a certain product anywhere, but they come to your store for the service and the atmosphere. Don’t forget this crucial fact when shopping for retail space.
As business begins to grow you will find yourself needing more space to hold the amount of customers foaming for your product. It is at this time where you don’t need to worry so much about how much space you have and how much it will cost because of how much money you’ve made. Expanding your business practice elsewhere may be a more beneficial venture than expanding your space. You can make a little more profit with small chains around the nation than a few large retail store.
About the author: Jason Ausmus is a web content producer for Innuity. For more information regarding retail spaceor office leasing, please visit Royal Commercial.
How Much Space Do You Need for Your Business to Function Efficiently?
Wednesday, November 25th, 2009Product is in your store, but the presentation, organization and clutter are getting in the way of consumers finding what they need. They suffer from visual overload and shut down as a shopper. What can you, as a space-challenged retailer, do to remedy this type of situation? Read on for some tips with retail space and commercial real estate.
EVALUATE YOUR INVENTORY
A visual floor audit of your products and a ledger pad will be a good start. Walk each department and take a survey of what products are in each department that are actually current. Identify by the fact that if the customer cannot self-shop an item without staff help, then it doesn’t need to be on the showroom floor and can go to a space in the backroom or behind the counter. You can also make a list of parts and accessories that are out of season. Remember, you are trying to free up space and rid your store of clutter for items that need to sell right now.
Your floor space fills up quickly in the ATV department. If ATV is a year-round hot pick for you but if you are still working to find space for the summer riding season (which you need to stock and sell in about 120 days), my suggestion is to cut the ATV area down in size by displaying one of each item. You might load up a unit with lots of goodies and show the items that way. That will save space and be a great selling aid. If you happen to sell that one, accessorize another one. I am sure the vendors will be happy to sell you more ATV stuff. When ATV is in-season (fall in most parts of the U.S.) expand the department again to offer multiples and self-shopping of accessories.
SCRUTINIZE YOUR FIXTURES
Most of the time, space is not the only issue. It is the fixture choice which is not the most efficient for the product type. For example, every store needs staple goods like oils, lubes, chemicals and cleaners. Are they placed where they need to be, or are they housed on some fixture that cannot be relocated? Consider moving them onto one of my favorite fixtures in the industry: the “LiL Joe” by Rock Eagle. This little workhorse not only holds 1,200 lbs. of weight, but its retail footprint is only 36″ and it is round and low. You can see over this fixture, and it offers 360 degrees of self-shopping. Fill the shelves and back stock the rest. You can restock as needed. Your consumers do not have to see that you house 1,000 bottles of oil; they just need to find one.
Another space saver is to acquire small “H-Unit” fixtures for apparel and parts and accessories. This type of fixture allows four-sided shopping in a footprint that generally is about 5′ long and 3′ wide. By incorporating shelves along with your slat pegs for packaged items, you can display some of the boxed items that may look awkward on your walls. For apparel, using hangrails and straight outs, and adding topper shelves on each side, gives a home to add on sale accessories like folded casual wear, ball caps, and other small items. You can show a helmet to match the riding gear in the same color way presentation being shown. This helps package related items and offer “good product adjacency.” This is a consumer desired expectation.
LIMIT YOUR SELECTIONS
One game plan in a small retail floor plan is to exercise some restraint in your product offerings. No one has enough space to carry all vendor and label brands, in all styles. Buyers have to make choices on the number of style selections, colors and sizes they can purchase. Another consideration is, will the product be open for reoccurring orders, or is it a special or limited run? You certainly need to offer today’s savvy consumers some choices. Even the motorcycle riding community entails many personalities and body types. To better use your space, clean house on your style offerings. Decide what is core and what stays, and select the styles that you need to get rid of through creative marketing, markdowns, clearance, Internet sales, etc.
You can accomplish a clean, organized, uncluttered and professional retail image and by doing so, increase your inventory turns at the same time — even in a smaller retail environment.
About the author: Jason Ausmus is a web content producer for Innuity. For more information regarding commercial real estateor retail space, visit Royal Commercial
Find Out Where You Need to Setup Your Retail Store
Thursday, November 12th, 2009You have designed a great product, you have a business license and all your ducks are in a row. Besides your online store, you need to get a retail space to store inventory as well as sell your product. Before you make that move to rent a retail space, there is a lot to know. Commercial real estate will help you find the location that will best sell your products and make you a greater profit.
Before You Open up Your Retail Space- Do Your Homework
Before you sign the dotted line on just any retail space, make sure you do your homework or better yet, hire someone to do the homework for you! Think realistically, if you over-commit, you could be in over your head before you even open the doors.
• Make a list. What size space do you think you will need to start with currently?
• How much space will you need in the future? What is your business’s projected growth?
Think About Retail Space Location
Many people say that location is everything. Before you settle on one particular location make sure you research each retail space you are thinking about. Here are a few things to look for:
• What is amount of car and foot traffic in front of each retail space?
• Find out who the previous renter was, did they do any unseen damage to the place? Why did they leave?
• Does the rent match up with other retail spaces in the area?
• Where is your closest competitor? If they are going to be a neighbor, perhaps it’s not the ideal location
Think About Your Audience- Where are They Located?
• Does your location get local area traffic or just tourists or both? Depending on your product, you may want to be in a neighborhood or near a busy tourist destination.
Depending on Your Product, Could Your Share Space?
• If you have large furniture to sell, you won’t likely want to share your space with anyone else, but if you are looking to sell your handmade scarves, you may want to look into a smaller retail space, like a kiosk or a shared space with someone else who is looking to share.
Research Restrictions Before it’s Too Late
Some retail spaces say what you can and cannot do in regards to signs, flower boxes and other décor. Be sure and find out what types of restrictions come with the retail space. Other things to consider:
• Is there ample parking? Or bus service near your business?
• Are you allowed to have a large sign above your business?
• What is the maximum occupancy?
If all this seems like way to much to think about, while you are trying to work on other aspects of your business, you can hire a commercial real estate agent who helps small businesses find what they are looking for in regards to retail space. Hiring a professional to help you find a retail space could save you money in the long run- they know where to look, what to avoid and how to talk terms. Plus, with someone who knows about commercial property, once you have decided on a place, you’ll have a connection to painters, movers and handy men once you close on a deal- and what is not to like about that?
About the author: Jason Ausmus is a web content producer for Innuity. For more information regardingretail space or commercial real estatego to Royal Commercial
Building a Steady Flow for Your Business
Thursday, November 5th, 2009As we search for the right spot for our business, we must take into consideration how that space will affect the usability of your customers. The variants are between office space and retail space. As we look into it we notice that the ability to find the right amount of space is what makes a business succeed or fail.
Retail space needs the most attention when it comes to the amount of space that you’ll need for your business. Thing of yourself as a customer walking through a retail store; would you hate it if there wasn’t enough space for two or three people to walk comfortably side by side? A wave of claustrophobia can come over anyone which will cause them to leave your store immediately.
The amount of shelf space you need is something you also need to take into consideration. With every retail store there is overflow if an item isn’t selling well, or is selling very well. Where do you intend to put this product if there isn’t enough space to hold it all? You’re building up this business to be a working machine, and clutter becomes a lose cog blocking the workings.
Office space is a little bit different. Space is still something you need to take into consideration for guests and the eventual expansion of employees. Leaving room for expansion means that you don’t have to move again when you need to hire on more employees.
In terms of office space we also need to take into consideration the personal spaces of our employees. A happy employee is one that is able to express themselves in every aspect of their life. The desks that employees are given will more often then not contain photos family, posters, and anything else that means something to them. Remember that they are with you for 8 hours out of their day.
The differences between office and retail space are vast. We need to make sure we know the right amount of space needed for our business to keep our customers happy and coming back, as well as our employees. After all, the employees are what make your company run smoothly and the ability to give them the freedom that they need is what keeps a business running.
About the author: Jason Ausmus is a web content producer for Innuity. For more information regarding office space or retail space, visit Royal Commercial
Office Leasing & Equipment Leasing – Doing What is Best For Your Business
Tuesday, September 29th, 2009These days retail retail space is pretty easy to find as office leasing prices are low and buildings are open on every corner. However, if your company is like most, they tend not to lease their office equipment. They simply buy something new when they need it and then use it until it breaks. And even worse, they will use it until it breaks – even if it is worn down and barely operable. Recently, a problem the U. S. government has faced has brought some of the problems with this method into light.
Massive catastrophes, such as large earthquakes, 9/11 or hurricane Katrina, require a lot of organizations to respond at once. Have you ever really stopped to consider how all these companies coordinate their joint efforts? Well, sadly, there isn’t a central hub that handles all the coordination; there isn’t even a communication method that exists between all the different organizations. While each organization may have radios to communicate with one another, they can’t communicate outside of their individual organizations. This makes any type of large scale operation very difficult.
But, this is the government right? They must have better equipment that they can use. I mean consider the technology that we have these days and the immense amount of opportunity that is available. Funny thing is the U.S. government does not currently lease their equipment; they use it until it runs out. Unfortunately this means that they are using equipment not up to the standard needed to be versatile enough to be used across so many communication platforms. The hardware and power needed to create such a system is vast. This is exactly why the government has been looking into the option of leasing equipment. It would make it much easier to switch out one piece of equipment for something nicer and newer.
Much like the companies many of us work for, it can be often very difficult to get new equipment in the first place, unless it is something that deeply and immediately affects the bottom line. With equipment leasing, it is a much easier process because the money is already being spent and the item can simply be upgraded. And, with the tight economy, companies are more frugal than ever. With product leasing you are paying for the use of the product rather than the actual product.
Perhaps it won’t make sense for every company or even every piece of large equipment. But, when it comes to things like the U.S Governments communication problems, it might be just the way to go. Who knows, but it would be awfully nice to get the latest and greatest release of a product when it is just out on the shelves. Instead of using outdated equipment, computers that run slow or items that are long overdue for replacement, a company could probably increase its productivity with the right equipment. While each company can evaluate such a program and decide if it is worth it, it certainly is something to consider.
About the Author: Rebecca Beckett is a freelance writer for Innuity. If you would like more information about retail space or office leasing go to Royal Commercial