At O’Connell Store Fixtures, installing store fixtures is the smallest part of what we do. Our team is here to launch your new pharmacy on the path to success — and that begins with proper planning.
Our new blog series, “Did You Do Your Due Diligence?”, will showcase real life stories of pharmacy owners in Ontario who failed to plan properly. Read our blogs to learn how to avoid their mistakes and develop strategies for doing ‘due diligence’ when building a pharmacy!
In the first edition of “Did You Do Your Due Diligence?”, we will address the question of location. Everything starts with location, when you are building a new pharmacy. A location will determine the future success of your pharmacy, based on foot traffic in the area, the suitability of the building, and other factors.
Here’s the first thing you need to know: locations with cheap rent are not good locations. A location will always have cheap rent for a reason. Customer won’t be able to find you in these locations or they’ll be in bad parts of town. Picking a budget option for your property will only compromise the success of your pharmacy further down the road.
Second, when you pick a location for your pharmacy, make sure you go to check it out in person. We met one pharmacy owner who failed to do this, with dramatic results. This owner wanted a location in Cabbagetown, Toronto. He had leased a property and asked us to inspect it for him.
When we went to the location, we found a pile of concrete dumped on the floor. Contractors had been sent to install tiles by the new owner, but the work had stalled and the concrete had set there. As a result, the floor was giving slightly and flooring joints were not sitting properly anymore.
After inspecting the space under the floor, we determined that the floor was going to cave in if ceramic tile were installed on it (as the owner intended). The damaged floor would not hold the full weight of the tiles.
It was a bad location for a pharmacy; the building should have been condemned. If the owner had acted then, he could have called the landlord (or the city) to address the problem. Instead, he went ahead with construction anyways — despite our recommendations. He had to have the floor torn out and redone, resulting in a huge expenditure of money repairing the space afterwards.
What’s the takeaway? Check out your new location and ensure that it is a good fit for a pharmacy (or any business). Do your due diligence!
Need help choosing a location for your pharmacy? Contact the team at O’Connell Store Fixtures in Ontario.
