What
is in a location, when I have a great concept and people will flock,
where ever I am, this can be a killer thought, literally. Where your
business is located is going to be a very crucial.
Having
worked with a Brand which was in to franchising of spoken English
classes, the need to locate the centres at the right place was always
dwelled by me to the people who were getting the franchisees on
board. We had few very successful centres, each one of them ideally
located. One near the Bus terminus & Suburban station in
Chennai, Near Dadar Station in Mumbai, One at the busy SR Nagar bus
stop in Hyderabad and another at Maitri Vanam in Ameerpet, Hyderabad.
First
two being closer to the railway stations, the centre was easily
accessible to the learners, SR Nagar is a busy location and a centre
close to the Bus stop was just the place. Maitri Vanam was where
hundreds of training institutes were located and what better place to
be. You may be located at the 2nd or 3rd floor
of a building without a lift, students will still come, same thing
cannot be said if your target client is elderly, they will simply
stay away.
All
these places you would get lot of walk ins without much publicity.
This fact has to be remembered depending on the business we select.
Today in T. Nagar Chennai, you start a textile shop or a gold souk,
you are sure to get business, simply because the place got recognised
for these two. Similarly the various Khao Gallis in various cities,
start a cart or a shop in this location to serve any variety food,
you are sure to find business. It is unfortunate, our governments
don’t try to encourage Khao gallis or food courts like the
Singapore government did.
I
have a case study of two confectionery outlets which started setting
up their outlets about the same time in Chennai. One went boldly and
started choosing locations which are on prominent roads, with parking
and the other started where ever they could get a place irrespective
of the fact whether the outlet is visible n accessible. I am sure you
would have known the result the one which didn’t go for proper
location had to shut shop soon, in spite of serving better variety.
It
is also important how you position yourself. There was this place on
Ormes road, Chennai, where many a restaurant was started and soon
shut shop. Then came Murugan Idly who opened in this so called
'Jinxed' place and today they are going strong in that location,
simply because, they were a best option for many a vegetarian
household (north Indian community) in that locality and it is doing
well. This had prompted many fresh Vegetarian only outlets to come up
in the vicinity, all doing well.
One
famous garment brand opened an outlet near a flyover in the second
floor of a building in T. Nagar, with an entrance which needs to be
searched, soon they had to shift out and start it on the main road,
wonder why in the first place the franchise owners allowed them to
open the outlet in the first location.
Sometimes
your brand or offering might get you crowd where ever you are located
but, being better located can get your more business, unless you are
someone, who makes only 50 dosas in a day and sell them each at
Rs.250 a pc and still be happy (Avenue Road, Bangalore)
Today
biggest problem in the cities and towns is the parking, however much
you have perfect valet system in place, people would be mindful, if
you have sufficient parking, based on which they would like to visit
your outlet.
Keeping
this fact in mind, many an outlet is being set-up in malls, simply
because there is plenty of parking available. Walk-ins are assured,
but how do you convert the crowd in to business is up to what you
have to offer. UB city, Bangalore, is an exclusive place for up
market brands, however their restaurants are flocked by youngsters,
who are wanting a good time. In this place one should not get carried
away by seeing the crowd and start an outlet, as the restaurant going
crowd is most unlikely be the buyers for your offerings.
What
can be concluded from all this is, you have to have an ideal location
for your kind of business, for this, it will be very worth while to
spend time understanding your clientele and how best to reach them.
You want help in choosing a good location for your business, call 9840429384
(Copyright of the pictures used in this blog rests with the respective owners)
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