Office relocation: a stress-free guide for small businesses

Whether your business is growing or you’re strategically downsizing, there are many reasons you could be moving offices. And while it’s a big change, there are ways to manage stress and cut costs.

From important questions to ask yourself to the little things that may slip your mind, keep reading for our guide to moving offices.

Office relocation checklist
Office relocation services
Office relocation costs

Office relocation checklist

Before you start packing boxes, it’s important to make sure you’re prepared for your big move. Follow our office relocation checklist to help get started.

Map out your milestones

Moving offices can be stressful. It’s easy to focus on the wrong tasks and then, before you know it, you’re running out of time. That’s why it’s important to create a detailed timeline or schedule and stick to it.

Map out the major milestones of your move and set a date for meeting them. Below is an example of a basic timeline you could use – including example milestone deadlines:

looking for a new office space – six months before
giving notice on your lease – three months before
notifying employees and customers – two months before
booking an office relocation service – one month before
the date to be all packed up by – one week before
changing your address with Companies House – two days before
getting your internet and phone lines connected – one day before

Decide a budget

The first thing you’ll need to budget for is your rent. A cash flow forecast can help you work out how much you could realistically spend on rent.

Perhaps business is booming and you need to move into a bigger space, or maybe you’re moving into your first office space after running a home business and this is the first time you’ll be dealing with this expense. If your rent is now increasing, you’ll need to account for this in your business’s budget.

You could also be downsizing, which means your rent may be cheaper. Make sure this is recorded in your budget too.

However, it’s not just your rent that you’ll need to budget for. Moving is expensive in itself – from the cost of hiring movers or skips, to renovations or cleaning fees. Make sure to think about what you’ll need so you can budget for it in advance.

Here are a few things to include in your budget:

hiring a moving company
waste removals
changing internet providers
professional cleaning services
changing addresses on printed marketing materials
new furniture or equipment

Choose the right location

Your workspace is crucial for productivity, growth, and employee wellbeing. Here are some questions to ask yourself when choosing an office location:

Is it accessible for employees? Having good public transport links and parking facilities will make things easier for your employees.
Is there good foot traffic? Depending on the nature of your business, good footfall could be key to your success.
Is there room to grow? Will you have to move offices again if your business is successful or you need to hire more staff?
Does it match your style of work? Whether your company thrives on collaboration or private working spaces, your office space will need to reflect this.
Are there any additional service charges? Make sure you’re aware of any additional fees you’ll need to pay, such as the upkeep and cleaning of common areas.
Is the building energy efficient? As well as rent, you’ll need to factor in the cost of your utilities such as gas and energy bills.
Is there good security in place? Or will you need to source your own?
What’s the working environment like? Consider things like natural light, ventilation, and noise levels to make sure it’ll be a pleasant working experience.

If you’ve answered the above questions and feel satisfied your new office fits your needs, you’ll be ready to sign a lease agreement. Make sure that your lease is flexible so it can best support your growth. You can also consider adding a break clause in your contract in case you need to end your lease early.

Employee engagement

It’s important to remember that you’re not just moving offices, you’re moving your team too. There are practical things to consider, as well as things that can support your employees’ wellbeing throughout the time.

In terms of practicality, is there anything you could do to make the move less stressful? One option is to allow employees to work from home around the time of the move, so any moving or packing doesn’t get in the way of your team – and vice versa.

If you need your team’s help with packing their belongings, set fair deadlines and give your team plenty of notice. You can even offer incentives like free lunch to those who clear out their desks by a certain date.

Get your team excited about the move by giving them input – whether it’s on where to sit or the choice of decor.

Get connected

To make sure you don’t miss out on any work, you’ll need to get your new office online as soon as possible. Speak to your business broadband provider to set up a switch – or even use your move as an opportunity to shop around and find a new deal.

Don’t forget to get your VoIP system hooked up in time, so your team can continue making calls.

Keep clients in the loop

In all the excitement of the move, there’s some important admin you can’t forget. Let your clients know you’re moving – you can make an announcement on social media or reach out to customers directly.

This is especially important if you’re in the middle of business and need to add your new address to your invoice.

You’ll also need to update your address on Google if you want potential customers to find you later.

And finally, you’ll need to let Companies House know you’ve changed your registered office address.

Office relocation services

As your big move draws closer, you’ll need to decide whether you plan to tackle the move yourself or whether you’ll hire professionals to help.

Hiring professional movers

Professional movers are more experienced, which means the whole process will likely be more efficient. It will also save you time you could spend on other things – as well as reducing stress in an already hectic time.

These companies will also likely be insured, which can protect your belongings if they’re damaged or lost.

However, hiring professionals is an extra cost you’ll need to budget for.

Moving yourself

Moving offices yourself is certainly the most budget-friendly approach to office relocation, as well as making sure you have full control over what happens and when.

However, doing it yourself can be a highly demanding job and takes time away from the other important aspects of moving offices – as well as your day job. And if you’re moving expensive or large equipment, there’s a higher risk of injury or damage.

Office relocation costs

However you approach your relocation, moving offices is going to be expensive. From hiring professionals to downtime on the job, you’ll need to budget appropriately to minimise your losses.

If you’re looking to save on costs, you can try selling your unwanted furniture and equipment to make some money back – which also means less things to move. Decluttering and getting rid of anything you no longer need will also help with this.

You can also enlist your team to help with packing or cleaning, which means you won’t have to pay for additional services outside the move.

And finally: if you don’t ask, you don’t get. Check out our guide to negotiation skills and see if you can make a deal with your moving company.

Have you experienced moving offices before? Share your best tips in the comments below.

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