One benefit of moving to a smaller office space is an advantage of the location. If you plan to move to a busier part of the city, you might need to settle for a smaller office to boost your sales or easily reach your clients. Whatever the reason, you will face a few limitations and challenges in the process of relocation. They can be easily avoided with a little planning, proper help, and a positive attitude.
Nothing good comes without planning
When it comes to moving office inventory, you won’t do anything right without proper planning. If you haven’t already, get the blueprints and measurements of the new office space and inquire about building rules. Commercial and (residential) buildings might have specific hours (or location) designated for parking, unloading, use of freight elevators, as well as moving in. Planning your new office layout will save you a great deal of effort later.
One of the trials of downsizing is deciding what you can dispose of. There’s no point wasting time, money, and effort packing and moving things you won’t need or can’t fit into your new office. Once it’s clear what needs to be transported, you should know where and how it can fit. Moving to a smaller office space means that you might need to rent a storage unit for excess stuff. Archive and other items you don’t need daily should be stored first and kept close enough to your new office.
Renting a storage unit for your archive pays off
How should you handle moving to smaller office space?
Depending on the size of your inventory, a question pops into mind: should you rent a moving truck or hire professional movers? While both options have their advantages, it seems wise to rely on professionals experienced in commercial relocation. Note that you should remain available to your clients as much as possible, which leaves rather limited time for relocation and setting up your new office. Professionals will apply their well-organized techniques and move your office safely and quickly. If you believe that you and your team should handle the move, protect your employees first and then your inventory. This implies that you might need to rent moving dollies or straps and furniture protectors and take care nobody gets hurt.
Commercial movers have set out themselves for a reason
Should you opt for professional relocation assistance, set the moving budget first. Inquire with several moving companies about the price of commercial relocation. For example, Moving of America – NJ Movers will give you a free moving quote so you know where you stand. It might be necessary to invite a representative of the moving company to inspect your current (and new) office space and give you a more accurate estimate of both moving and storage costs. Top-most priority is to contract a reputable but affordable moving company, experienced in commercial relocation. Always ask if they can provide a list of references.
Don’t delegate disconnecting and reconnecting your electronics to movers
You can try to handle the move on your own
If you’re moving your office to close to Manhattan, you won’t have a problem to find an experienced team of movers to hire in Paramus. They will certainly know which part of the office inventory to move first. Nevertheless, your IT team should be the one to disconnect, label and re-connect electronics, if possible. Don’t forget to inform your clients that you may be temporarily unavailable during the relocation, either by sending an email or posting a note on your homepage or both. Packing up your office may prove to be too much work for your team, though. However, you can ask them to take care of their belongings only, and assign the moving company to handle the rest of the packing and unpacking. Just in case you get stuck during your DIY office relocation, consider hiring a moving manager to get you through the process.
Packing and unpacking like a pro
You have a few options to handle the packing of your office. If your business and team are small, you can split the work. Assign every employee with a set of small tasks, to label boxes and cables, take photos of how electronics are connected, pack their desks and office inventory. Moreover, make sure you update your new address and contact information with Google and other online services. You wouldn’t want your clients to look for your office at your old address or call the wrong numbers.
Whether you’re moving your office on your own or not, it’s better if your employees pack their desks
Moreover, you should unpack smartly, too, if you’re relocating to a smaller office space. Moving to a smaller office space is a good opportunity to get rid of clutter and start anew. Once you have stored your old archival binders, consider not making any new. Even though you can upload your new archive to a cloud, you’d still need storage space in your office. Use your walls and space under and above each desk to install shelves for essential files and office accessories.
The creative side of moving to a small office space
Relocation to a new office will give you one more opportunity, which is to solve any design or practical issues you have had in the old one. You can look for an office with wider windows allowing more natural light, and ventilation, to improve your employees’ health. Cubicles may have worked fine in your large working space but in a small office, they would significantly add to the overall claustrophobia. On the other hand, a smaller working space might improve social interactions and motivation, brainstorming, and productivity in your team. Large desks are a past, too. New, compact workstations designed for small offices should replace them. However, if you need more desktop space, put your monitor on an adjustable arm. If you plan or need to dispose of any large office furniture or bulky old appliances, try to sell them, recycle them or donate them.
