Location plays a vital role for any business startup

One of the most crucial aspects while starting a business is finding an ideal location. When you plan to launch a brand’s outlets, there are a dozen things to take care of. One mistake of landing at the wrong location can cost you extravagantly.So, let us tell you about finding the right location and how it can be the real game changer in your franchise biz.

First and foremost thing that you need to decide about the kind of model are you preferring. You want to move ahead with small Kiosks or Big outlets? In case your brand falls in a niche category, you would want to be located at all prime locations in the city. Choosing a location is not a child’s play. It can take a lot of time, energy and homework. Be ready to toil hard for this part of your business.

Know about your TG
It is vital to know who you are catering to. For a food brand, even a cart or kiosk can work wonders, but if it is a retail brand like a shoe brand or may be a bag company, then your target must be clear to find the right spot in prime markets and directly cater to the youth and HNI too. Famous Milkshake brand, Keventers overcomes the challenges with the help of local partners. Sohrab Sitama, CEO and Director of the brand tells us: ‘Yes, we also face location/real estate issues and to overcome them we partner with a local businessman. We give franchise rights to local people who know about the place or who are from the same city. They know about the city and help us with the location.’

You also have to look into customer convenience here. Just knowing your TG and not thinking about their ease cannot be the right thing for your brand.

Competition
Another factor that is totally related to right location is competition. You have to do your homework regarding existence of competing companies nearby. It is a growing trend that most brands of the same category are located at the same place. It does not matter much as far as it is a prime location. It is quite possible that at such locations you may attract customers from other shops with your exciting schemes and offers. Atul Ahuja, Vice President- Retail for Apollo Pharmacy says: ‘As a medicine brand, we never faced such challenges. Many brands face problem with getting the right ground floor location, but we always got what we wanted because people are ready to always associate with a medicine brand that too a known one.’

History is important
Before finalising any location, you must also know the past of that place. If previous 3 restaurants or outlets have failed, what was the reason? Try and find out. Still if you think you have the plan ready to make that place successful for your brand, go ahead after doing a lot of market research and homework. One of India’s largest fashion jewellery brands, Voylla has 100 plus store locations and has recently entered the franchise business. Vishwas Shringi,Co-Founder & CEO- Voylla Fashions Pvt. Ltd tells: ‘Location plays most vital role in the success of a franchise. We, at Voylla have been very particular about choosing best places to maximise the number of customers we can connect with. Getting the right space for selected format based on catchment has been a challenge, but we are fortunate to be associated with partners who realise potential of the brand and work hard to find the right location.’

Many other factors like parking, accessibility, requirements, cost, and safety are also important angles to be looked into before choosing any location for your brand. Before going ahead with any major decision, look into every issue. Determine your priorities, choose and look into a lot of options before finalising one.