Location, location location...

[txdoc]

Hi everyone,
looking for some location advice here... If you wish to share your thoughts and experiences, I would really appreciate it. This is mostly a question directed to those operating from an office or studio (or both), rather than from a home-office.

What made you decide on a specific location for your corporation/studio? Did you factor specific differences in City occupancy taxes etc in the decision, or was it mostly based on convenience/accessibility and target market analysis? Any advantages or disadvantages to selecting locations outside the loop, aside from the reduced traffic? For some reason it seems that the nicer office locations (Med Center, skyline district, galleria etc) are harder to access during rush hours - so there would be an advantage to moving into quieter city limits such as Webster, Friendswood, League City, Texas City...
On the other hand, an office in the Med Center or one of the downtown towers definitely seems more appealing to me, and gives more of a corporate image to the business. In a way, my first impression is that a city location conveys a more professional look that would be more consistent with the brand. But that is also just me being me, I tend to think tall building and large corporate office by default, and I'm now wondering if sometimes things could be done also in a more simple (and why not, cheaper) way...

Some of the smaller cities may also have tax advantages (license, occupancy, etc) when compared to downtown where we pay tax on everything anyway -or is that a myth and tax requirements are the same everywhere?
Anyone with multiple locations, and if yes are you seeing any specific advantages to having two different locations?

Please share pros and cons, comments, advice, experiences, thanks much!

[HotHolly]

I can't answer your tax questions, but I can tell you that you should steer clear of paying a premium for retail space unless there is some reason why you MUST have it. Example - The Picture People. They relied on walk-ins and needed heavy foot traffic.

I am currently paying a premium for an upscale boutique shopping center that was brand new when I signed my lease. If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't do it. Make your studio/ office the way you want it on the inside, make sure you won't get shot on the outside, and keep rent and utilities as low as possible.

And don't pay for office/ studio space until you MUST have it. Studios can quickly go from awesome to awful, if you don't figure everything out and have a game plan (and about 10 back up plans) prior to signing the lease. Good luck!

[txdoc]

Hi Holly, thank you for your answer!
we do not expect any walk-in traffic since all encounters will be on appointment - but need to have an office with a full-size meeting room where we can meet with clients and work on floorplans etc. This space will not be used to take photographs, which are always on-location, but it would need a conference room and a separate room for computers, scanners etc to do the post-production work.
The places we have been looking at (TMC and skyline district) are very expensive in terms of rent. Granted, the suites here are absolutely great, and a lot of corporate services are included in the rent (parking, furniture, receptionists, housekeeping, phones, network) - but it really is a lot of coin.
So that's why I'm brainstorming about some lower priced options, and about maybe going outside the loop into some smaller communities. A shared/temporary office, or not using an office front would be inconsistent corporate branding and is really last resort.
Whoever said that location is everything was definitely right...
Help and advice are much appreciated, Thanks!

[Tom]

We chose ours because of the convenient location and the great price.

[HotHolly]

Think outside the box. You don't need the high overhead on your meeting space.

Our first "office" was at the local country club. We had a monthly membership was way the butt cheaper than rent, and had the affluent feel we needed. Plus drinks, pool, and party space. Win win.

Other places to look at are artist lofts and warehouses that have AC and heat. You can make it look urban posh. If I dump my studio next year, I'm going back to the country club. That was awesome.

[SCone]

Heard the commercials for VirtualOffice.com on the radio. Never have went any further than just browsing the website. A friend of mine had a similar office in north Dallas that provided him a small office, network connections & phone services, access to several conference rooms & reception at a reasonable rate according to him.

[LadyShutterBug]

I have both (an office in the museum district area on Montrose and one on Friendswood). The tax stuff was not something I looked into-- just based my locations on my demand. I found both spaces on Craigslist.

Neither is retail, both are quiet appointment-only spaces. I have a small studio in the Montrose office that works for my indoor needs (newborns & infants and boudoir). It's a high-end feeling new-construction building where the experience starts with private parking. Since wedding clients need to meet after hours, I also needed a place that was absolutely secure and safe feeling at night.

Unless I move to a mostly-portraits business model, I'll likely keep a presence in the city because I love being central, upscale, on the scene, blah blah blah. My in-the-loop fabulous couples aren't going to drive to Friendswood for a consultation, and I am absolutely never going back to the coffee shop meeting space thing. I enjoy the privacy and the ability to surround a potential client with my work, and control their experience.

The Friendswood space is a small combo retail/office in a space on the main drag. No studio, but the possibility of one should the need arise. It's mostly used for sales appointments and senior portrait planning... It's cute, friendly, and affordable.

You need to decide who your target market is going to be, and move forward with that goal in mind. Do you want to make a commute in town, or stay local? There are pros and cons to both situations. I don't depend on foot traffic and don't want to have to give precious time to anyone who walks in the door... I prefer to screen and set times to meet. I also have not found it necessary to have phone service at either office.

Most of my production work is done out of my home office. My admin assistant also come to my home office to do her work.

[txdoc]

Thanks! You make a lot of good points in your post, and the idea of two different locations is actually interesting.
I had not thought about craigslist at all, will definitely take a look at it.
Thank you so much everyone for your advice!

[LadyShutterBug]

There are a TON of listings on Craigslist. As nice as my places are, I was kind of surprised to have found them there... but Houston doesn't have a really great internet office listing (well there's loopnet, but it's somewhat annoying with lots of brokers and middlemen, and you have to register).

You can put in your desired SF, $$, and keywords.