Important criteria to consider when choosing a warehouse location

Choosing the right location for a warehouse can be one of the most important factors that will determine the success of your business. Having a warehouse at an unsuitable location means time and revenue loss, which will ultimately affect your business big time. Now, if you are moving or expanding your business overseas, finding the right location for your warehouse can be significantly more difficult than when you are searching domestically. Therefore, in the following article, one of the best international movers in the country will show you all the important criteria you need to consider when choosing a warehouse location. Let’s take a look.

Things to consider when choosing a location for your warehouse

There are many important criteria to consider when choosing a warehouse location either domestically or overseas. Naturally, you won’t be able to fulfill all the things that are important. But if you get most of them it will mean much for your business overall. Here are the things that you need to pay attention to:

• Learn about the rent and utility costs as well as taxations rates and possible financial enticements
• Research where your customer base is
• Inspect the surrounding infrastructure such as access roads as well as airports, railway stations, and ports
• Look for available buildings and areas where warehouses are located
• Check whether there is a wide availability of labor in the vicinity
• Learn about the local laws and regulations
• Find out about the environmental risks in the area
• Learn about waste disposal and management
• Plan scalability and future expansion possibilities

Learn as much as possible about the rent costs, utility costs, taxations rates, and possible financial enticements

Business is mostly about money, right? Well, at least that can be said in most cases. So let’s presume that you are in your running a business for profits. If that is the case, the first of the important criteria to consider when choosing a warehouse location will be the costs. Now, warehouse costs depend on many things. But the most obvious things that everyone looks at first are rent and utility costs. Also, you also need to research taxation rates as well as possible financial enticements you may encounter. Nevertheless, the sheer rent cost should be the main thing to focus on. Unfortunately, like pretty much everything else, warehouse rent costs skyrocketed in the last two years. Still, if you are open to moving to a distant location because of the costs, you will still manage to find an affordable warehouse.

Average warehouse rental prices in the US

Right now, in the United States, warehouse rent costs will differ depending on the city and they can range from as low as $2.50 per square foot per year to as high as $16.50 per square foot per year. For the cheapest rents look at Western Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, and Illinois.

Average warehouse rental prices in Australia

If you are planning on moving to Australia, the average warehouse rental cost in Sydney is around US$12.59 per square foot. In Brisbane, the average warehouse rental cost will be $11.74 per square foot. And if you are considering moving your business to Perth, you will find prices of around $11.02 per square foot. As you can see, warehouse rental costs are not as affordable as you can find in the cheapest places in the US. And when we add the costs of hiring moving companies to Australia it is clear that you need to have a good plan if you want your business to succeed.

Average warehouse rental prices in Spain

Maybe Europe can be a better location for your warehouse considering the costs in the US and Australia? If your business is moving from USA to Spain, because of the market sizes, you should probably consider either Madrid or Barcelona. The annual primary rent costs for warehouses over 50,000 square feet in the logistics market in Barcelona reached $8.08 per square foot at the end of 2021. In Madrid, the price was, and still is around $ 6.97 per square foot.  So, we can say that warehouse rental prices in Spain are much more affordable than in USA and Australia. But what about the UK?

Average warehouse rental prices in the UK

The UK is not known as a cheap country. So you should probably find higher warehouse rental costs if your business is moving to the UK from USA. But is that really the case? Right now, the average warehouse rental prices in the UK are around $10.93 per square foot. This is not so terrible, considering the costs in the US and Australia. Still, it is around 40% higher than in Spain. Also, know that in the UK, the price per square foot of smaller industrial warehousing is more expensive than that of larger warehousing. So, if you are getting a larger warehouse, you will also find lower prices.

Average warehouse rental prices in France

Let’s also take a look at France as one of the most appealing European countries. If you are moving to France from USA you will find that warehouse rental prices are significantly lower than in all other countries we covered. The price for a square foot of warehouse space around Paris is around $5.58. Unfortunately, the prices in all countries we covered are on the rise in 2022. So make sure that you check those numbers before you actually move your business. Nevertheless, the prices we covered should be a good indication at least as far as the overall costs you may encounter.  France and Spain are the cheapest options while the USA and Australia will be the most expensive.

Don’t forget about tax rates and possible financial incentives

Different countries also have different taxation rates. So that will be another important piece of criteria to consider when choosing a warehouse location. Unfortunately, that is something that can be pretty complicated to understand. Especially if you are researching a foreign country. So before you actually rent a warehouse and hire moving overseas companies, hire a local financial advisor that will help you understand local taxation rates.

Where is your customer base located?

The next important piece of criteria to consider when choosing a warehouse location is the location of your customer base. Naturally, you want to be as close as possible to your customers. This will speed up the delivery time as well as lower your transportation costs. Also, being closer to your customers can also help you be more competitive. If you are not able to find the best place so that your warehouse is close to your targeted market, at least make sure that the surrounding infrastructure allows you to get your goods out faster.

Inspect the surrounding infrastructure and make sure that you have good access roads as well as airports, railway stations, and ports

When you are trying to find a perfect location for your warehouse, the next best thing next to being close to your targeted market is the good surrounding infrastructure. If you want to reach your market as fast and as cheap as possible, make sure that the warehouse is located at a place that has good access roads. If your customer base is scattered in different countries, and you are doing, for example, international car transportation, make sure that you have easy access to airports, railways, and ports.

Find available buildings and areas where warehouses are located

Being close to your customers and having a good surrounding infrastructure are some of the most important criteria to consider when choosing a warehouse location. However, you also need to make sure that the building in which your warehouse will be located is in good condition. In most countries in the world, warehouses are usually located in industrial areas. So you can probably find a few available options at the same location. Still, that doesn’t mean that all available spaces will be good for your business. Therefore, make sure that you inspect available buildings and real estate before you rent a warehouse. There could be a much better option just around the corner.

Make sure that there is a wide availability of labor in the vicinity

Another thing that you probably haven’t thought of is the availability of the workforce. Naturally, if you can find a warehouse where there is a wide labor availability that can significantly lower your expenses as well as affect the overall success of your business. So before you actually decide on a warehouse check local demographics in the area and unemployment rates in comparable occupations. Also, bear in mind that large universities and trade schools located nearby can be an important thing for your local job market and a consistent talent pool from which you will draw your future workforce.

Learn all that you can about the local laws and regulations

Laws and regulations can pretty much differ across the globe. So the things that you are used to right now in the US can be pretty different if you, for example, move your company to France. This can be a pretty important factor to consider when choosing a warehouse location. So make sure that you learn all about it before you decide to make such a significant investment.

Are there any environmental risks in the area?

When you are looking for a perfect warehouse location, you also need to pay attention to environmental risks that can potentially have a big effect on your entire business. A large flood, a landslide, or a fire can ruin your entire business in the blink of an eye. And those are the things that will not be so easy to recognize at first. Especially if you are moving your business to a new country where you do not know anything about the area. So, find out about the recent events and what has been done to prevent similar things in the future.

Waste disposal and management requirements are also very important criteria to consider when choosing a warehouse location

Waste disposal and management are becoming important factors when running your business. Of course, every country has different rules and regulations. And some countries will have stricter rules than others. Waste disposal and management are especially important in the countries of the European Union and Australia and can be a significant expense for your business. So make sure that you learn all that you can about it before you move your business overseas.

Will you be able to expand your business without moving it?

The final important piece of criteria to consider when choosing a warehouse location is the scalability and future expansion possibility. If you do all those things above and you manage to find a perfect location for your warehouse, your business will inevitably grow fast. And you want to have the possibility to expand your business without having to move it once again. So make sure that you will have that possibility at the location you choose. Fortunately, as most warehouses are located in industrial areas, in most cases, there will be other available spaces in the area.

Don’t forget about the moving costs

Those are the most important criteria to consider when choosing a warehouse location. As you can see, there are many things to consider if you want to make sure that your business thrives at the new location. Another thing that you also shouldn’t forget about is the moving costs. Moving furniture overseas is not cheap so make sure that you count that in as well.