How to research potential store locations

To find the right home for your business, you need to become a local detective. The most important step is to create a checklist of your ideal location's features—like customer type, visibility, and nearby competition—and then visit potential areas in person. Spending time on the ground at different times of the day and week is the only way to truly understand the potential of a location and avoid a costly mistake.

What to Look For: Your Location Checklist

Before you start looking at specific empty shops, get a feel for different neighbourhoods. For each potential area, use this checklist to guide your observations:

• Footfall: This is simply the number of people walking past. Is the street busy or quiet? A high footfall is great, but it’s only useful if they are the right kind of people for your business.
• Target Customers: Look at the people in the area. Are they students, office workers, young families, or tourists? Do they match the profile of your ideal customer? A trendy café, for example, might struggle in a quiet retirement village.
• Visibility and Access: Can potential customers easily see your shop? Is it on a main road or tucked down a side street? Consider how people will get to you. Is there parking nearby? Is it close to a bus stop or train station?
• Local Competition: Who else is trading nearby? Don't be immediately put off by competitors. A cluster of similar shops (like bookshops or boutiques) can create a 'destination', attracting more customers to the area. On the other hand, being right next to a huge, established competitor could be a major challenge.
• Neighbouring Businesses: Look at the businesses that would be your neighbours. Are they complementary? For example, a gift shop could do very well next to a popular coffee shop or post office that generates lots of footfall.

How to Conduct Your Research

1. Start with Online Maps: Use tools like Google Maps and Street View to explore different high streets and commercial areas from your desk. This will help you create a shortlist of places to visit.
2. Visit in Person (More Than Once): This is the most critical step. Visit your shortlisted areas at different times. A street that is buzzing at 1 pm on a Tuesday might be completely dead on a Saturday afternoon. You need to see the full picture.
3. Count Potential Customers: Spend 30 minutes simply standing outside a potential unit and counting the number of people who walk past. Make a note of their general age and type. This simple exercise gives you real data to work with.
4. Talk to Other Shop Owners: Be friendly and pop into some of the non-competing shops nearby. Ask them what the area is like, how busy it gets, and if there are any local issues. You can get invaluable, honest insights this way.

Top Tip: Try not to fall in love with the first place you see. It’s vital to compare at least two or three different locations against your checklist. This helps you make a logical decision based on evidence, rather than an emotional one that you might regret later.