The 10 Top Questions to Ask BEFORE Leasing a Store Space!

Once you have identified a site, or multiple sites of interest, you should then call the Landlord or Listing Broker to obtain all information like asking price per square foot, size of the available store, and set up a showing so that you can view the interior of the space.

photo credit:  Ian Balwin

Additional questions to keep in mind:

- Does the frontage (the number of feet of window space you have open to the street) provide enough visibility to the road?

- Is the bathroom strategically located in a spot that will not take up valuable floor or storage space?

- Is the ceiling in good shape?

- What is the age of the heating and air conditioning unit?

- What are the 1-3-5 mile radius demographics?

- What are the traffic counts at the intersection of the roads at the property?

- What is the access in and out of the property from the streets?

- Is there pylon signage available to you?

- Is there plenty of parking available to you?

- Look at the co-tenants in the shopping center. Are they complimentary uses to yours?

Leasing a retail store should be a successful venture if you are in the correct location and part of a team who not only leasing you the building but works to promote it using social media. Sharp Realty has a proven track record of success and will be happy to help your business to become a success!


Sharp Realty, LLC.
400 Union Hill Suite 300
Birmingham, Al. 35209
Phone: 205-879-1995www.sharprealty.com

Why Open A Family Business in Madison, Georgia?

Madison Georgia, what makes it a great place to open a business?

Besides the amazing people, weather and its proximity to Atlanta and the beaches, the demographics are perfect for a family owned business.

Sharp Realty, owns and manages the retail shopping location at Madison Crossing. Our anchor store is Bi-Lo (41,423 SF), the family friendly tenants include: The Cato Corporation, Shoe Show, Hong Kong Restaurants, Fancy Nails, Lock’s Hair Salon, Pancho’s MexicanGrill, Madison Family Dentistry and Orthodontic Center.

We currently have two retail spaces available in the sizes of 2,800 SF and 1,500 SF. 

Get your business in the right location!

Commercial Space available for lease, call today to join our retail team.Our Management Team Leader: Rhonda Lusco

Sharp Realty, LLC.

400 Union Hill Suite 300

Birmingham, Al. 35209

Phone: 205-879-1995

www.sharprealty.com

Other topics:
How being organized in a multi-tasking world ensures business success? 

Make a Good Impression: 5 Ways To Spruce Up the Office. 
3 Basics of Business Branding for Small Business Today. 

Franchise Verses Traditional Business Owner - Which is best?

Many people dream of opening their own business but they are unsure what avenue will be best for their personality, time and money. Is franchising or being a traditional business owner best?

You must weigh the benefits and costs of both and determine which best fits your needs, life style and personality.

Here are six areas you should consider.

Control

When you start your own business, you're in control of every detail, large and small. This can be a blessing and a curse.  With a franchise business, you control your franchise unit in terms of the culture and values you set, and who you hire and fire, but you must follow the franchisor's operating system.

Business Operating system
If you're the creative, innovative type, starting your own business is the way to go. Most franchised businesses provide a complete, out-of-the-box ready to use operating business system.

Brand Awareness
Building brand awareness takes time and money. The advantage for franchise owners is the brand has been established over years or decades. Customers seek out the reliability and familiarity of their favorite brands.

Most Franchises have a set amount of money to spend on marketing or it is pooled together into a national marketing campaign. 

A single business owner must set aside money and/or time to do the marketing for the business. 

Equipment and supplies
Pros and Cons; Outfitting your new business with everything you need means researching what equipment to buy, finding suppliers, and negotiating deals. The pro is you can be creative and think outside the box.  The con is it can cost a lot of time and money with a small margin for error.

Franchisors can provide invaluable help in knowing both what and how much to buy - often at reduced prices and they have the styles picked out for you.

Training
You may be the best at what you do, but do you know how to manage a business, hire and train employees, market your product or service, keep the books, etc.? When you start your own business, you must learn all these things or hire someone who does.

Franchisors provide new franchisees with extensive training in every aspect of their new business.

Location

We have all heard, location, location, location!

As a small business owner you need the best location to attract the buying customers to your store front. Doing research and contacting an experienced Commercial Realtor who knows your area is all part of starting on your own. 

Most franchises have done all the research for you and they know where you should open your store front.

No matter what you decide, run your business with passion and determination to succeed!

Sharp Realty, LLC.

400 Union Hill Suite 300

Birmingham, Al. 35209

Phone: 205-879-1995

www.sharprealty.com

Other topics:
How being organized in a multi-tasking world ensures business success? 

Make a Good Impression: 5 Ways ToSpruce Up the Office

3 Basics of Business Branding for Small Business Today

4 Smarter Time Management Tips for Small Business Owners

In this world of instant gratification time management is something that all small businesses seem to struggle with.  But maximizing your time is vital for businesses to stay successful. Below are a few tips to manage your time better.

1.  Make Time for Training: The biggest time-waster for most retail managers is answering employee's questions about mundane tasks.

If you find yourself getting a lot of routine queries, you probably haven't trained your employees adequately.

When you compile your to-do list, make teaching something new to your people one of your daily priorities. 

2. Take control: Practice not answering the phone just because it's ringing and e-mails just because they show up.

Disconnect instant messaging. Instead, schedule a time to answer email and return phone calls.

3.  Take the first 30 minutes of every day to plan your day. Don't start your day until you complete your time plan. The most important time of your day is the time you schedule to schedule time. 

4. Take five minutes before every task to decide what result you want to attain. This will help you know what success looks like before you start. Take five minutes after each task to determine whether your desired result was achieved.

Let us know how you feel about these tips.
Blog by Sharp Realty and Management.


Commercial Real Estate Office and retail location space for lease throughout the United States. Contact us for details.

Sharp Realty

400 Union Hill Drive, Suite 300 Birmingham, Al 35209

205-879-1995

www.SharpRealty.com

Get your business in the right location!

It may be cold outside but the Cherry Tree Plaza is hot with activity of customers and new retail stores opening in the plaza. We would like to welcome some of the new stores!

Welcome:
Smooth You Med Spa & Boutique
108 Cherry Tree Plaza
Washington, Indiana 47501
(812) 254-6810

About: Smooth You is a place where all your skincare needs can be met with our numerous products and specialized services. We are located in Cherry Tree Plaza in Washington, IN. Sharon Cullen, R.N. is the owner of Smooth You.
Visit them on Facebook - Smooth You Med Spa Boutique.  

 

Welcome:
Four Stars Books & Games
107 Cherry Tree Plaza
Washington, IN 47501
(812) 259-2035

About: We love entertainment! Video games (New & Retro), DVDs, Books, Electronics, Vinyl, Comics, and RPG Books and Dice! PC repair with FREE estimates! We Buy, Sell, and Trade!

Here at Four Star: Books And Games we pride ourselves in 4 STAR QUALITY REPAIRS at the lowest possible prices! Don’t throw your money away on a new system. Make your electronics last longer, and operate more efficiently! Let us keep your electronics like new, and keep more cash in your pocket!  

Four Star: Books And Games - because if it’s not the best, it just isn’t worth it!
Visit them on Facebook - FourStarBooksandGames

Welcome:
EyeWorks
109 Cherry Tree Plaza
Washington, Indiana 47501
(512) 254-1600

About: Glasses and Contacts in about one hour!
We are a full service optometric practice. We have 5 fulltime optometrists on staff along with 3 visiting Opthalmologists, one being a retinal specialist. We perform full eye health examinations, along with fitting glasses and all types of contact lenses. We have the largest inventory of the latest eyeglasses and contact lenses in the area. We also have a state of the art computerized optical lab to produce the finest eyeglasses for you in about one hour.  Visit Them on Facebook - ILikeEyeWorks.

Expanded in to large space:
Anytime Fitness
101 Cherry Tree Plaza
Washington, Indiana 47501
(812) 254-2200

About: 24 Hour Fitness Club with Personal Training and Tanning available. Visit them on Facebook - AnyTimeFitnessWashingtonIn.

Coming soon: Jimbo’s Pizza and Wings! The current businesses located in the plaza include Peebles Department Store, Jay C Foods, Orscheln Farm & Home, Trader Baker’s, GNC, Radio Shack, Fiesta Salon, Hibbett Sports, Great Wall Restaurant.

Get your business in the right location!
Commercial Space available for lease in Washington, Indiana.

Suite 100 @ 2,000 sf

Suite 112 @ 910 sf

Suite 114 @ 5,425 sf

Suite 116 @ 1,200 sf

Contact the Management Team: Rhonda Lusco

Sharp Realty, LLC.

400 Union Hill Suite 300

Birmingham, Al. 35209

Phone: 205-879-1995

www.SharpRealty.com

How to keep customers coming back as repeat buyers?

As economic times become tougher many consumers are focusing more on only necessary purchases. How do you get them to continue buying your products or services that are beyond essentials?

Creating an emotional bond between the consumer and the products or services they use is a MUST for business owners.  Apple's iPhone is one of the best examples of a company doing this.

When a customer has an emotional connection with a business or product they are more likely to keep coming back!

How can a business that does not have a large marketing budget still create such an emotional bond?  Below are 4 things a businesses can do to establish and maintain a relationship with their customers.

1.  People connection – it seems like the more mobile and social we are getting online the less social and customer friendly we are being offline.
Remind your employees to connect with the customers, ask personal questions like “Did you have a great weekend”? “How’s your week going”?

There is nothing like good old fashioned customer service when customers are buying in your store or online!

2.  Add a personal thank you note of appreciation for their continued business. A thank you goes a long way especially when it is expressed in the written form. In this modern time we seem to have forgotten the emotional attachment that can develop from the written word.

3.  Highlight your business in a human light by presenting the owner and staff on a personal level.  Feature pictures and stories in your store and online about the person or personal event.

Create a “Meet the Staff” or Team Board. Design a board in the store that displays personal pictures, hobbies and interest of your staff. As the customers read and see pictures of your team members they become more connect on a personal level and don’t see them just as a salesperson.

4. Create an experience when they come into your store. Design an atmosphere appropriate to your business. Hand out unique paper and pen to take notes, tea or water in a special cup, cookies, or a special goody bag when they check out.

Consumers buy on emotion! You must develop that emotional experience for them. Use your time wisely by creating an emotional and human connection with consumers.

 

Blog content by: Sharp Realty.
For more great tips follow us on Facebook or Twitter.


Sharp Realty

400 Union Hill Drive, Suite 300 Birmingham, Al 35209

205-879-1995

www.SharpRealty.com

Thinking about opening a Retail Store?

Many people have a passion and their dream is to open a small business or franchise. Here are a few things to consider.

What type of Store?
Passion, determination and love of the store are key ingredients because you will spend a lot of hours in the store.

What kind of retailer?
Retail consists of the sale of physical goods or merchandise from a fixed location, such as a department store, boutique or kiosk, or by mall, in small or individual lots for direct consumption by the purchaser. Retailing may include subordinated services, such as delivery.

Where will it be located?

Location is the most important ingredient for any business that relies on customers. It is also one of the most difficult to plan for completely. Many turn to a Real Estate professional to help guide them because they typically know the business area and what is available.  

How big of a store do you need?
Answering the above questions first will help determine the size. Also, working with the complex’s manager before signing a lease to determine what best suits your needs.

How important is an anchor store to drive foot traffic?
When you are looking for the right complex for your store notice what type of anchor stores are in the complex to draw foot traffic to the shopping complex.

Free consultations are available at Sharp Realty to help you find the BEST location to fulfill your dream.

Phone: 205-879-1995 * www.SharpRealty.com