In my years of doing Marketing, I’ve noted that on many occasions, location can be the life or death of a business. Success and failure can be completely reliant on where you set up, so it’s really important to take your location into account when deciding where you want to operate.
Selecting the right location for your business can significantly influence your success. Even the most innovative product or exceptional service may struggle to perform in the wrong environment. If you’re wondering how to grow your business or seeking ways to enhance overall performance, one of the first areas to assess is your physical (or even online) location.
At Vani Malik Consulting, we work with businesses across the UK and globally, providing strategic advice, business health checks, and financial guidance to help identify whether your current location is supporting – or holding back – your growth.
Here are some key factors you may wish to consider:
Are You Attracting Enough Footfall?
If your business relies on walk-in customers but you’re not seeing steady traffic, your location may not be ideal. Your store should be visible, easily accessible, and positioned where your target customers naturally spend time. Limited visibility can make it difficult to attract new customers and limit opportunities for growth. I’ve noticed that even a slight difference in location can make a really big difference when it comes to natural footfall. For restaurants, as an example, you will get a lot more regular traffic from having the business on a busy high street than on a more quiet side road. This means that the traffic is organic from passers by and the business owner doesn’t have to invest as much in advertising.
Business improvement tip: Consider relocating to a busier high street, near complementary businesses, or closer to public transport routes to increase visibility and accessibility.
Are You Reaching the Right Demographic?
A busy area doesn’t automatically mean it’s going to be a good fit. If the local customer base doesn’t align with your ideal demographic, sales performance will likely suffer. For instance, a premium boutique in a predominantly budget-focused neighbourhood may find it hard to gain traction, though there are many cases in which a business like this could thrive as a niche market.
Recommendation: Analyse local demographics to ensure they align with your target market. If not, it might be time to revisit your business development strategy and ensure your business model is built around the right audience.
Is Your Rent Sustainable?
High visibility is valuable but not at the expense of profitability. If rental costs are consuming too much of your margin, leaving little room for reinvestment, your location may not be sustainable in the long term. Going back to restaurants, it can be really hard to juggle location and footfall with the costs of staff necessary to sustain the quantity of customers.
Strategic insight: A comprehensive business health check can help you assess whether your rent and overheads are proportionate to your sales and long-term growth potential.
Is Your Business Growing?
If you often find yourself asking, “How can I get more customers?” or “How can I improve my business performance?”, your location might be part of the issue. Some businesses simply outgrow their space – or their market.
Business growth tip: If your current location restricts your ability to expand, explore new areas that align better with your business expansion goals and customer demand.
Are You Planning for the Future?
A great location today may not serve you tomorrow. Urban development, demographic changes, and new competitors can all impact your business performance. Regularly reviewing your business strategy and growth plans ensures that your location continues to support your long-term objectives.
While location isn’t the only factor behind retail success it’s one of the most important. If your business is underperforming, reassessing your location may be the key to unlocking growth.
Let Vani Malik Consulting help you refine your strategy, access funding, and plan your next move with confidence.
A digital marketer with over 15 years’ experience, I’ve worked with more than 400 companies across a wide range of industries. From startups to established brands, I specialise in creating strategies that boost visibility, engage audiences, and drive real results.
