Moving businesses is necessary when you’re deciding to relocate individually, are seeking a state that’s more affordable to operate in, or for any other number of reasons to move to a new location. That being said, the process is often more complex than many business owners may be led to believe. If a move is on the horizon for your business, here are some tips on how to move your business easily and what to avoid if you want to make your move as seamless as possible.
How to Move Your Business Easily
Any business owner could be forgiven for thinking that picking up and moving shop would be simple. While it’s not an overly complex process, there’s more to it than meets the eye. If you want to make sure your transition to a new location in your area or even out-of-state goes well, let’s take a look at a few tips that will be essential to your move.
- Make sure you close out your business in your current state and re-register and take care of licensing and other paperwork in your new state. You must take care of all the necessary set-up you dealt with initially in your new location if you wish to continue doing business.
- Update any and all documentation or accounts to reflect the move as soon as possible.
- Hire a professional moving company if you’re moving office equipment and fragile technology. Experienced professional movers who frequently work with businesses are the best fit. You may even be able to take advantage of storage services or services where your moving company sets up all of your office equipment if you need it.
- Establish a budget and a full moving plan prior to undergoing the move. You want as few surprises as possible once you get to your next destination.
What Not to Do When Moving Your Company
The bulk of the focus that goes into guides surrounding how to move your business elsewhere emphasizes everything you should do. But what about common actions other businesses take that you should avoid? Here are some of the things you should not do when moving your company.
- Don’t continue doing business while your business is registered in another state unless you’re prepared to deal with the taxes and have determined it’s the best course of action.
- Don’t spring the move on your employees suddenly. They should be given ample notice so that they can determine if they need to look for a new job or wish to relocate (if remote roles aren’t available).
- Don’t keep your customers or clients in the dark about the move. If shipping is going to take longer or projects are going to be on hold, they need to be made aware of it.
Put simply, you shouldn’t go into the process without doing your due diligence and making sure that everyone in your organization and those who rely on your organization knows what’s happening. Unless there’s a reason why you need to move suddenly, this process should take as long as it needs so that you can move with ease and confidence once the time comes. You may not even have to stop business if you do so accordingly. There are numerous thoughts when trying to do this, but you could move in small increments until every last bit has been transferred or even focus on doing it all in a weekend or two if you need that much time.
Moving a business requires a great deal of planning and preparation. If you’re a new business owner or you’ve never had to move your business before, you may not be quite sure where to begin. The guide above will give you some points to consider as well as some actions to avoid that should make your move to a new location much easier for you.
