Five signs it’s time to relocate your struggling business

As many businesses continue to feel the effects of a down economy and fight for survival, some may be able to turn around their situation by relocating according to Ecodev, LLC, a site selection firm uniting companies and communities in partnerships for sustainable economic growth.

“In the past year, we’ve seen a vast uptick in companies looking to relocate part or all of their business in order to reduce costs and better position themselves for growth,” said Dana Olson, president/CEO and founder of Ecodev. “Businesses that are facing employee layoffs or the closing of plants should consider relocation before taking more drastic measures.”

Since 2002, Ecodev has helped numerous companies to find the best community to optimize their financial, labor and productivity investment. For instance, some areas of the country are known to be more pro-business, offering tax incentives and grants to growing businesses. Other areas boast lower property costs or a more qualified or affordable labor pool which makes them a more attractive area to locate.

Whatever the reason, Olson says it comes down to what makes sense for the individual business. How do you know if relocating is the answer for your business? Olson advises taking a close look at your business needs and how those needs are or aren’t being met by your current community. He says this process starts with analyzing your business’s operating model and comparing key costs with what these same costs would be in a different area of the United States.

“Most people start a business or buy a business in the town where they live for convenience, and they don’t consider that it may be dramatically more successful in another part of the country,” said Olson. “Relocating can typically save a company 20 to 30 percent in lower operating costs. In addition, job creation grants can generate the operating cash needed to fund the move and/or growth.”

Five Signs to Relocate a Struggling Business:

1. You need to upgrade your facility. If you are in the midst of expansion, look beyond your backyard to ensure that you are moving into a community that not only meets your property needs often at a lower rate, but provides a qualified labor pool and an attractive economic incentives package. Further, consolidating multiple sites into one location can save money and streamline operations.

2. Hiring and retaining employees is an issue. Workforce issues can be overcome by relocating to a community that better matches your company’s specific labor needs. For instance, when a leading medical transcription company was having difficulty hiring and maintaining its employee base, it located a training center near a community college and developed a partnership with the college to train and recruit transcriptionists. In another example, a manufacturing company that struggled to find adequate sheet metal operators was able to relocate to a community with a ready-to-go workforce.

3. Your operating model is too expensive. Moving your company to the right community can help to create a more profitable operating model, including lower labor and infrastructure costs and the ability to secure cash incentives and grants.

4. Your company is not in close proximity to your customers. If your business is serving a customer base located halfway across the country, it may make sense to move a portion of your operations in order to cut shipping and transportation costs.

5. Taxes, taxes taxes. Unfortunately, the United States is the second-highest taxed country for business; however, tax structures vary dramatically from state to state. By moving a company or expanding in a new location, a business can save a substantial amount by considering an area that provides lower taxes, tax breaks and incentives to businesses.

About Ecodev:
Ecodev, LLC creates and retains jobs in North America by providing companies with the insight and resources to maximize their expansion or relocation objectives. A leader in site selection and economic development, Ecodev matches the ideal company profile with the right community by maximizing the financial grants and incentives available to a company and leveraging the resources that each brings to the project.