Why We Move: What Motivates Companies To Move Businesses Downtown?

In June 2015, Smart Growth America released an in-depth study of 500 businesses across the nation that had recently relocated to downtown or urban areas.  Through their research, they discovered there are seven main motivations for business owners when it comes to making the big move.

Here’s a brief summary of each. Do any of these reasons for moving resonate with your company?

1) Attract and Retain Young Talent

The need to appeal to millennials has grown even greater since this study was released, and with good reason. They are the largest segment of the American workforce, making up 34% of all workers. They are living, working, and playing in urban city centers and prefer bikes or mass transit to cars, and renting to owning.

Depending on your industry, attracting and retaining this demographic might not even be negotiable.  If you are in need of hiring for competitive jobs in sectors like engineering, software development, and biotechnology, moving downtown gives you a huge leg up in terms of differentiation. 

Read more about the needs of millennials in the workforce:

• Attract & Retain Millennials Across the Demographic Spectrum
• Hiring Millennials

2) Build Brand Identity

Moving is an opportunity to revisit and enhance your brand. Think about the type of company you are and how your new space can help communicate your brand to the public and solidify your brand strategy to your staff and clients. Your location says a lot about who you are as a company and your values.

Read more about building brand identity:

• 10 Questions to Ask Before Choosing an Office Location
• Why is My Office Location Still Important in a Digital World?

3) Affect Company Culture

If the move is thought out and employees are properly engaged, relocating can be an incredible opportunity to reignite positive company culture and get everyone on the same page moving forward towards exciting new growth.

Read more about affecting company culture:

• Helping Your Staff Move from the Suburbs to Downtown
  

4) Provide the Space to Promote Creative Collaboration

Many companies chose locations in dynamic, creative, and engaging neighborhoods to help inspire their employees and encourage collaboration among co-workers as well as with employees at other companies or in other industries.

Read more about promoting creative collaboration:

• Work/Life Balance: How to Keep Your Work at the Office 
• 6 Must-Haves in Your Office Floor Plan

5) Increase Proximity to Clients and Partners

Working in such a centralized location streamlines the collaborative process for employees who take in-person meetings with clients and partners downtown.

Read more about the importance of location:

• Looking to Relocate Your Company?

6) Centralize Operations

A central downtown location, because of its proximity to everything, is a natural choice for many companies when consolidating multiple locations, particularly if those locations were spread out over a single region.

Read more about looking at location through an operations lens:

• Link Roundup: Resources for Moving Your Business 

7) Support Triple-Bottom Line Business Outcomes

For many companies, investing in a city’s center was an opportunity for good corporate citizenship and a way to use their sizable investing power for good. Some reported that triple-bottom line business practices came with the ancillary benefit of making them more attractive as an employer.

Read more about how a downtown move supports triple-bottom line business outcomes:

• ROI in Buildings with Amenities

Do any of these motivations for moving sound like they apply to your business? You’re in good company! Might we suggest Cleveland, Ohio as an excellent relocation spot? Read why Cleveland is the best place for a business to be.