Lessons learned opening a second location

Last year ago we opened our second location. We’d run out of space at our original bakery and took over a second site which houses the working part of the bakery plus a second shop and cafe. It all went exactly as planned, was on budget and there were no problems.

Just kidding, obviously. I love our new space, and it was definitely the right move. But it was also stressful and we learnt some, occasionally painful, lessons. Here are some of them.

1. Don’t get wedded to a particular version of things. You make a plan based on how you expect things to go and how you expect the new location to perform. Stay flexible. Nothing ever goes exactly as you imagine and hanging stubbornly on to something that isn’t working won’t do you any favours. We planned a staffing structure at our second place based on what worked well at our first place. That made sense. It also made sense to let the dust settle before making any changes. What didn’t make sense was persisting with that staff structure long after it was clear that what we needed at the new location was different. Don’t be afraid to adapt the plan.

2. It can be stressful, but not just for you. Some of your team might freak out. The new location will likely impact them in one way or another even if they remain at the original place, if for no other reason than your attention will be divided. It can feel frustrating when a team member is losing their mind because the takeaway cups are being stored in a different place whilst you’re trying to juggle all kinds of pressure and stress. Be patient with them and try to see things from their point of view. You’re used to being under pressure and dealing with lots of new things, they might not be. You decided to open somewhere new, they didn’t. There isn’t a magic fix for this but patience and lots of communication will go a long way. Keeping the team up to date with what’s happening can feel like it’s not a priority when you have a mixer to move/coffee machine to install/101 new staff to train but the more you keep your existing team in the loop the more on board they’re likely to be. If there is a change in workload or the way things are done everyone will initially insist it can’t be done, and the new system is a disaster. Bide your time. Everyone will calm down and you’ll be able to laugh about it later. Promise. It is also worth noting that it’s not always the staff you expect to freak out who do. Sometimes it’s the one who’s usually calm. And sometimes it’s exactly the one you expected.

3. Don’t abandon financial planning. I know you knew I was going to say this but for the love of God don’t abandon all your financial planning. It can feel like getting open is all that matters, and you’ll worry about the budget later, you just really have to buy those chairs for the cafe now. But that’s like thinking that all the difficult stuff is over once you’ve given birth. Actually, the hard part is just beginning. If you ignore your budget and just spend, spend, spend in order to get open, cashflow disaster lurks around the corner. Most bakeries and cafes, whether they’re the first or the thirtieth, don’t open at full capacity. It usually takes time for sales to build. If you have over-extended yourself to open in the first place this can create real problems. Working capital is your friend here. Factor in some money to pay the bills in the early months whilst your new place is finding its feet. And don’t blow your budget. Yes, you want your new place to look amazing but if the only way to fund that is short-term borrowing that you will then struggle to repay, you need to rein yourself in.

Have I made all of these mistakes? Of course I have, that’s how I learnt the lessons. I share them with you so that you don’t have to.

Want some more hard-won wisdom? Or just a fresh pair of eyes on your business? Head to my 'Work With Me' page.