If you’ve decided to relocate or move your office – for whatever reason – you’ll no doubt have had to do a lot of planning and thinking. It’s a hugely stressful time for any business and can make or break the margins depending on how well the move is executed.
With so many important decisions to make, it’s easy to forget something along the way, which is why we’ve created an office relocation checklist for you to use during your move. Take a look at the following to see if you’re on track with your move:
4-6 months before the move
- Appoint your move co-ordinator internally. This will allow things to get under way, with plans made early to ensure nothing is left out.
- Get the measurements of your new office to plan for a new layout and furniture.
- Select a moving day, giving you something to aim for when booking and scheduling different aspects of the move.
- Begin looking at new numbers and enquiry avenues for the new site.
2-4 months before the move
- Choose your removals company, ensuring they have the capacity to manage your move on your desired dates and to your schedule.
- Make plans for having the internet connection at your new site installed or activated in advance of your arrival so that it is all up and running.
- Bring in professional cleaners, have them ready to clean your old premises as well as your new premises if you feel it is needed to bring the location up to standard.
- Update any communications systems you have in place – this is the perfect chance to catch up with the latest technology to benefit your business.
1-2 months before the move
- Make arrangements for your vending machine requirements – be it for snacks, coffee or both. Vending relocation into your new office space will require planning, while the needs of your team may also have changed.
- Obtain keys and security passes ready for site visits and to allow people to get access once the property is ready.
- Insurance for your new premises should be arranged, this may simply be a case of informing your current provider to update your price with them.
- If your new premises need to be fitted out, this should begin now, allowing any issues which crop up to be dealt with before the moving day.
1 month before the move
- Take an inventory of all your items and furniture before they’re packed or placed into storage. If something is no longer needed, sell it or donate it to charity.
- Get supplies for packing and start labelling items in terms of where they need to be moved to in the new office. Ensure staff take any personal items home with them to avoid them being packed/lost in this process.
- Inform the post office of your move – you should be able to set-up a forwarding system for different time lengths while you update customers and clients with your new address.
- Update your stationery to display your new address, this includes updating email signatures and document templates to avoid confusion further down the line.
1 week before the move
- Begin packing away all the non-essential items around your office ready to be moved.
- Ensure you don’t book any meetings with clients or customers in this period, as the dishevelled look of your office might be off putting at this point. Instead, impress them with your brand new office space and apologise for the postponement.
- Clean out your communal areas in your old office, including your fridges if they still contain food and drink items.
- You won’t need all your staff on the day of the move, so decide now who you will want to help the movers and which parts the business functionality you can’t operate without.
Moving day
- On moving day, ensure you have food and drink on hand for those people working or helping the movers.
- Gather up old keys and passes from your employees and have new ones ready.
- Ensure your vending machines arrive in good condition, or, if they’re new, direct delivery workers on where to situate them.
- Use your item inventory to check off items which arrive safely, totalling up at the end to ensure everything arrived.
- Hold a small celebration on everyone’s first day in the new office to make the move a positive one, perhaps offering free breakfast items.
This office relocation checklist is not exhaustive, nor does it represent things every business will need to do, but following the points will help you to better plan and prepare for the move if you haven’t already begun.
When it comes to vending machines, Nu Vending can help you to find the right vending solution for your requirements. We factor in the size of your office, staff tastes and which type of items you’ll mainly want – we can even help you if you’re currently in a contract with another company. Simply contact us today on 020 3858 3097 and we’ll be happy to help, in the meantime, please feel free to use the office relocation checklist to help with your move.
