Locating _ Relocating Your Business

Locating & Relocating Your Business Mark Remsa, Director Burlington County Department of Economic Development and Regional Planning 50 Rancocas Road, PO Box 6000 Mount Holly, NJ 08060 www.co.burlington.nj.us May 7, 2005 Objectives In today’s session we will: • Ask some fundamental questions about your business to help you make location decisions. • Discuss various sources of assistance available to you. Know Your Business In order to locate your business, you must know: • Your business. • How you want your business to grow in the future. • The physical needs of your business. • The governmental rules that regulate your business. • Can you afford the location. Know Your Business Fundamental Questions: • What do you do? – Retail – Personal services – Business services – Manufacturing… Know Your Business Fundamental Questions: • How do you do it? – Sell to public by physical store, telephone and/or Internet – Provide services on-site or off-site – Use noisy process to make things – Require a lot of deliveries by big trucks – Etc. Know Your Business Fundamental Questions: • Who are your customers or clients? – Pass-by traffic (locate on a highly traveled road or highway) – Walk-in traffic (locate where there is a lot of pedestrian traffic) – Spin-off traffic (locate near other businesses that are major attractions) – Off-site customers or clients to whom you must travel – Off-site customers or clients to whom you send your goods or services Know Your Business Fundamental Questions: • Where is your market area? – Local – Regional (county or inter-county) – State – Regional (state or interstate) – National – International Know Your Business Fundamental Questions: • Who are your employees, and from where do they commute to work? – Skill sets of your employees – Size of the labor pool – Time and distance of their commute – Modes of transportation available, used – Access to training and educational facilities – Salary and wage requirements Know Your Business BUSINESS FACTORS Downtown CBD LOCATION TYPES Highway Freestanding Highway Clustered or Shared Remote with Good Access to Highway Remote with Fair Access to Highway Business Type •Retail – Food X X X Key Business Operations •Prominent, Highly Visible •High Traffic •Big Truck Deliveries X X X X X X X X Customers and Clients •Repeat, Frequent •Pass-by, Automobile Market Area •5 Mile Radius X X X X X X X X Employee Needs •Semiskilled, Public Transit •Skilled, Private Car X X X X X X Know Your Business The Future of Your Business: (How do you want your business to grow in the future?) • Revenues – Today – One Year – Two Years – Five Years – Ten Years – Twenty Years Know Your Business The Future of Your Business: • Determine your operational requirements to achieve your revenue projections: – Personnel – Machinery – Processing – Storage – Display – Etc. Know Your Business The Future of Your Business: • Translate operational requirements into space requirements: – Area per person – Area per machine – Area per processing operation – Area for storage – Area for display – Etc. Know Your Business The Future of Your Business: • Sum up space requirements for the building and site – Parking – Loading – Storage – Display – Other Know Your Business Physical Needs of Your Business: • You now know the building and site space requirements… • Determine your utility needs: – – – – – Water Sewer Electrical Gas Other • Be certain that adequate public utilities with sufficient capacity are available! Know Your Business Rules Regulating Your Business: • Municipal zoning ordinances: – Land uses in your zone • Permitted • Prohibited • Grandfathered, requiring use variances for expansion – Bulk, area, yard and intensity • Coverage (how much of the site can be developed?) • FAR, envelope (how big of a building can be constructed?) – Parking, loading, signage and other requirements Know Your Business Rules Regulating Your Business: • Municipal business/mercantile license • Local and state health and performance standards – Noise – Vibration – Glare – Air Quality – Other Know Your Business Rules Regulating Your Business: • Local and state road access permits • Local and state environmental regulations – Wetlands – Flood Plain – Pinelands – CAFRA – Other Know Your Business Can You Afford the Location? • Add up site acquisition costs: – Financing – Attorney – Surveyor – Title Insurance – Engineering/Inspections – Other Know Your Business Can You Afford the Location? • Add up site improvement costs: – ―SOFT‖ COSTS • • • • • Approval Process/Permits Attorney Engineer Other Experts Financing – ―HARD‖ COSTS • Construction/Renovations Know Your Business Can You Afford the Location? • Compare all costs to financing to determine whether you can cover your debt and have enough cash left to finance your operations. Sources of Assistance • Burlington County Department of Economic Development and Regional Planning 609-265-5055 www.co.burlington.nj.us – Site Availabilities • Office • Industrial • Land – Small Business Loan Programs Sources of Assistance • U.S. Small Business Administration 973-645-2434 www.sba.gov – Financial Assistance Sources of Assistance • SCORE — Counselor to America’s Small Business 856-486-3421 www.nj-score.org – Free Business Counseling Sources of Assistance • New Jersey Small Business Development Center Rutgers University — Camden 856-225-6221 www.rsbdc.org – Free Business Management Counseling – Affordable Training Sources of Assistance • Burlington County College Business Incubator 856-222-9311 x2801 www.bcc.edu/html/ SmallBizIncubator.html – Start-up Companies – Low-cost Leases and Business Support Services Sources of Assistance • Rutgers-Camden Business Incubator 856-222-6400 http://camdensbc.rutgers.edu/cme/ camden-business-builders.html fskeith@camden.rutgers.edu – Start-up Companies – Low-cost Leases and Business Support Services Sources of Assistance • NJ Commerce, Economic Growth & Tourism Commission 609-777-0885 www.nj.gov/commerce – Location Assistance – Business Services Sources of Assistance • NJ Economic Development Authority 609-292-1800 www.njeda.com – Small and Mid-size Businesses – Entrepreneurial Training – Financing Sources of Assistance • PSE&G 973-430-6360 www.locationnj.com william.steffens@pseg.com – Location Assistance Questions? Mark Remsa, Director Burlington County Department of Economic Development and Regional Planning 50 Rancocas Road, PO Box 6000 Mount Holly, NJ 08060 609-265-5055 www.co.burlington.nj.us