Are You Ready to Open Your Second Business?

Growing a business is hard work. As you start to see the rewards of that hard work and enjoy the income and control that business ownership provides, a lot of people ask themselves, “should I open a second business?” Here are some tips to find out if you are ready to open your next business.

• Do you have a manager in charge, or are you doing all of the work by yourself?
• Is the timing right?
• Can you make sure that you don’t impact your first business?
• Can you delegate work?
• Do you have the time flexibility to devote your time to something else?
• What happens if your manager leaves?
• Is there territory available in my area?

Now that you have answers to the questions above, start thinking about what kind of business you want to open. Do you want to start over with a new franchise or do you want to open a second location of your current business? These are two great opportunities but two very different paths.

Here are five things to think about:

• What have you enjoyed about your business that you’d like to duplicate in your next business?
• What have you not enjoyed or would like to change in this next business?
• What is the best territory in your region?
• Would you like to have synergy between the two businesses (for example in the same industry where you could cross-market)?  Or would you like to diversify into a completely different industry?
• Can you share employees/managers between the businesses?

As the economy soars, most people are preparing for a change by diversifying into other businesses.  This is my specialty. Schedule a call with me and we can discuss if you’re ready and the steps you need to take for your next (or first) business.