Location, Location, Location

Location is the key to most businesses. - Phyllis Schlafly  (American political activist)

Mr. Breton didn't know about location, location, location.  - Daniel Pinkwater (author)

Looking for the right location for Agahan was frustrating, exciting, overwhelming and exhausting. I had a general idea where i wanted it. For almost two months, i spent time and money hunting.

This is a crucial part of starting a business. Unless you are so sure that you have a product or products people will trek mountains to have, it's best to find a place that is accessible an attracts your target market. No amount of ingenious marketing will improve a horrifyingly wrong location.

Anyway, I looked at several options. I started in early February, the very same week I got my cousin's yes. I logged on the net, bought Buy & Sell,  drove around the areas I wanted Agahan to be. But nothing was quite right.

In all that has happened to me so far, the smallest baby step, (you may not believe me but) I always felt that God's hand was in it. When something happens or does not happen, it's like i hear an unidentifiable voice in my head. This is it or not yet, it says. So despite external anxiety, I feel a certain calmness in my core.

Then on March 26, I was supposed to go to Ayala. But that morning, instead of taking any of my two usual routes, I took another, more roundabout one.

And that's when it happened.

I passed by this commercial building along Metropolitan Avenue. And there it was! A sign saying FOR RENT and there were a couple of numbers to call. After I was done with my errand (which was the reason for the drive to Ayala), I made the call.

Before I continue, a short note on this building. I had been passing by it so many times since I first saw it being constructed. As i pass by, I would look for a number to call so I can ask if they are entertaining inquiries. Didn't see any all those times.

Until that fateful morning. Fast forward to March 6, 2011.

That's when I found out that there is only one space left and that it's available to be viewed that day. So I went. And boy! The moment I saw it, I felt a certainty come over me. I had no idea yet how much the rental is nor how big the place is. I just felt it.

So I got the details and requirements. Since it was Saturday afternoon by then, there really wasn't much else to do. Come Monday, I submitted the Letter of Intent (LOI) needed.

The Letter of Intent is the very first step in securing your location. It has to have the following information:

1. The name of the company
2. name of the store
3. the nature of the business
4. how long do you intend to use the area

The following day, I got a phone call saying the owner wishes to speak with me the next day. So I went to the meeting and got a yes to the place with the usual caveat: reservation fee.

This fee depends on the building owner. In my case, it was equivalent to one month's rent. Once this is paid. The place is as good as yours. You can now lead designers and contractors and any other person you need to see, inspect, measure or whatever non-defacing activity should be done on your space.

Another thing you gain once you have paid the reservation fee is the two-week period to ready and pay the deposit and advance for the space. Again, in my case, it's two months worth of deposit and advance. When this is done, you next gain a two-month no-rental-charged period. This is supposed to be your construction time.

Now, since I'm still within the period, this is about all I can tell you yet. let's talk about the construction in a different entry, eh? So stay tuned? I hope?