Your business needs to grow. Perhaps you’ve been operating out of a home office. Perhaps your main office is your truck or van. Perhaps you have a storefront, but you don’t want to pay for more space than you already have.
These are typical problems that business owners face when their productivity has outpaced their bank account. When businesses were small and local, growth could be slow. In the corporate world, a small business can’t afford to grow slowly. Still, entrepreneurs don’t want to go bust trying to expand.
Identify Your True Needs
Different businesses require a different approach. A Phoenix dental office, for instance, may sense the need to grow. Perhaps they want to branch out and do oral surgery. They will need more space and more equipment. There’s just no way around it if they want to be effective.
On the other hand, an entrepreneur may run a business that doesn’t need much office space. They may need mobility. This is true of landscapers, contractors, plumbers, electricians and others. In another example, a sprinkler repair business may need storage for their supplies, but they don’t need to rent more office space to accommodate business growth.
Then there’s a third type of business. This one doesn’t need much storefront space, and it doesn’t need mobility. This one uses the internet to do much of its business. It still has products, displays and equipment, but it doesn’t need a handsome office space.
Cost-Effective Solutions to Meet Demand
When a business needs to grow, the entrepreneur needs to decide what is most important. If you grow too fast, you risk going bust. If you grow too slow, you miss an opportunity. The key is to choose least expensive ways to expand.
If you are the dentist who has to add an oral surgery, then you may have no choice but to rent a larger space. If you are the contractor who needs more trucks or vans, you may be able to stagger the schedule to allow the same trucks and vans to serve more routes or more worksites in the same day. This allows you to save money and wait for an opening in the budget to buy more work vehicles.
On the other hand, if you are the entrepreneur who just needs to store products, you may take a different approach. You can absorb storage unit costs much more easily than you could office or warehouse rent. That would be the logical way to go.
For those working from home, there’s a natural need for space. This can be satisfied by renting a storage unit for the business. This unit can be for seasonal household items as well as work items. You can think more clearly and get more done with less clutter. Yet you won’t have spent a fortune on office space to do it.
As you seek expansion, keep in mind how big your company is, how new it is, and how relevant it is. This will help you decide how to use your capital wisely and how to grow without imploding.
