If your business has outgrown its current space, it might be time for a new one. It’s exciting to realize your business has become so successful that you need a bigger storefront or office. But amongst all the excitement, you might also be feeling anxious. Moving a fully functioning business has many moving parts that must be considered. What will your budget be? How long will it take to get everything moved over? When can you be back up and running? Minimize stress and ensure a smooth move by hiring a specialized moving company. 

Maffucci Moving & Storage, with over 110 years of experience, is a trusted partner for businesses in the Tri-State Area looking to transition to new spaces. Our in-house certified-safe crew, carefully screened and expertly trained, ensures your items are handled with the utmost care. You can rely on Maffucci’s expertise and experience for all your business relocation transportation needs. 

How Do I Start Planning a Business Relocation?

Start planning early to ensure your business relocation is off to the right foot. Proper preparations begin with a detailed timeline at least three months, if not more, in advance. From there, create a designated moving team for each department and schedule regular progress check-ins with staff to communicate deadlines, expectations, and available storage space. You should also consider when your business sees the most customers to avoid disrupting that profitable time. 

Once you’ve done those things, it’s time to declutter, organize, and pack the items you won’t need before the move. When packing, it’s important to inventory your items in software (and on a physical piece of paper) to confirm that everything has arrived safely at your new place. Using color codes and a clear labeling system will go a long way to help with this. 

How Far in Advance Should I Start Planning a Business Move?

It’s best practice to start prepping for your business’s move at least six months in advance. This timeline will allow you wiggle room to find the perfect location, coordinate logistics, and share the big news with your employees and clients. It will also give you time to complete any required paperwork, update information, and set up utilities at the new space. The sooner you start, the better– procrastinating leads to rushed decisions and unnecessary stress.

What Should be Included in a Business Relocation Checklist?

Another critical thing to remember when preparing to move is to create a checklist. Your business relocation checklist should include reminders of things that need to be done/confirmed and companies that should be contacted, such as:

• Coordinating the movement of IT equipment 
• Contacting the telecommunications/data provider to schedule a cut-over date
• Checking the lease for requirements when returning space to the landlord 
• Order keys from the building
• Secure a signage vendor to plan and install new store signage
• Reserving a mover 
• Updating any place your address appears
• Notify clients and vendors, the post office, bank, IRS, and insurance company of the address change

How Can I Minimize Downtime During a Business Move?

Minimizing your business’s downtime is essential—that’s something we understand entirely. The longer you’re not operable, the bigger the losses you’ll take. Reducing your downtime ensures your employees remain focused and controls disruptions that your customers or business partners may face. It also helps to maintain the continuity of services and prepares the new office space for efficient operations from day one.

To keep things running during the move: 

• Schedule the move during off-hours or weekends 
• Plan for a phased move 
• Encourage remote work during the moving period 
• Work closely with your IT department to ensure minimal tech downtime 
• Have IT support on standby to address issues 
• Conduct a post-move survey to gather feedback and address any concerns

How Do I Ensure IT Systems Are Operational Quickly After a Move?

Disassembling and reassembling your IT equipment is a significant challenge when relocating to a new office. To get your IT systems operational as quickly as possible, we recommend ensuring the internet is reliable beforehand in the new location. You should also create a temporary network in the new office to enable immediate connectivity and perform a comprehensive backup of all critical files and systems.

This type of equipment is highly delicate and complicated to install, so you need a trustworthy team to take care of it. Your run-of-the-mill mover won’t be able to handle it, but specialized IT movers can. To help your movers get things up and running properly even quicker, make a detailed inventory of all IT assets, a network diagram of current and future setups, and strategies for server migration. 

What Are Common Mistakes to Avoid During a Business Relocation?

As we said earlier, relocating a business involves a lot of moving parts, which creates many opportunities for mistakes.

Heed our warning now! Avoid:

• Underestimating how long it’ll take to plan and execute the move
• Avoiding decluttering due to outdated/unused items
• Failing to update business addresses with vendors and clients 
• Lacking an organization and a disposal system
• Relying on memory or incomplete inventory lists
• Overlooking hidden or unexpected expenses (e.g., IT upgrades, cleaning, broken items)
• Failing to create a data backup plan
• Gathering quotes from multiple professional moving companies 

How Do I Communicate a Move to Employees and Clients?

You should always consider how you’ll communicate with your employees and clients during your move. The easiest thing to do is make a clear announcement explaining why you’re moving and how long you expect it to take. After the announcement, answer questions and be open to employee feedback, such as concerns about commute times. Holding regular meetings to discuss the move more in depth and sharing regular updates is a good idea to ease concerns. 

Also, consider providing relocation support or a hybrid schedule to make the transition easier.

Should I Hire a Commercial Moving Company?

Hiring a moving company specializing in commercial moves is crucial to ensuring that your office is back up and running with minimal downtime and stress. How do you know the best mover to pick? Look at which one has the best reputation, affordability, and availability.

Also consider if they offer any additional services such as:

• Packing
• Stacking
• Storage options

Moving Matters Effectively Managed with Maffucci

Running a business has its ups and downs. Relocation is one of the most significant stress points when you own your own company. Trying to relocate your entire operation alone is not worth the stress it could cause! Hand off all relocation concerns to a professional moving company. We’ll work with you and your employees at Maffucci to ensure a smooth transition.

Planning a business move? Let Maffucci Moving help you relocate with precision and minimal disruption. Contact us today for a customized commercial moving plan that keeps your operations running smoothly!