3 Tips to Guarantee a Successful Business Expansion in Toronto

Your business has been a success, so what’s the next logical step? If there has been a plethora of positive reviews from Canadian customers, then you might be thinking about expanding to one of its major cities – Toronto. According to the City of Toronto website, Toronto is “one of the greatest cities in the world to do business,” ranking well in terms of global competitiveness, innovation, and quality of life.

With this in mind, you might think a good move would be to open a new shop in Toronto. Although this will be a lot of work, this article has outlined three of the best tips to ensure this is a successful move for your business.

Begin with Market Research

This is the most important step to ensure your business will thrive in a new location. Conducting market research can uncover if there is true demand for your products. You can learn if there are competing businesses operating in Toronto, what rules and regulations may hinder business success, and so on. 

Market research also helps you learn about the customer demographics and target markets in the city, financing like business registration and licensing, and the availability of domain names. This might be time consuming and expensive, but it is incredibly necessary; costs can be cut if you carry out the market research yourself instead of hiring a third-party firm. 

The information you gather through primary and secondary research can then be added your business plan. Although this might seem like a pointless step for an established business, but the information you find might differ in this new location.

Determine Where to Set Up Shop

After conducting market research, you can move on to find the perfect location for your business.  If there is a higher demand for your goods and/or services in West Queen West or The Junction neighborhoods, you will want to visit these areas before finalizing your decision. Be on the lookout for competitors, noting how many there are and if your business could stand out between them all. For example, if you sell luxury clothing pieces, your business might struggle if it is situated beside a discount retailer.

When it comes to choosing a location in Toronto, you will need to experience the city first, and this can take some time. It is encouraged that company owners hoping to expand should rent furnished apartments in Toronto when they need to determine the best area for business. By doing this, you can rent a fully equipped apartment for a month or more, using the time to evaluate if the available locations have good access for suppliers and new staff, are in need of your business’ goods and/or services, suit your brand, and so on.

Consider the Logistics of Your Business

Expanding to Toronto will require an evaluation of logistics, especially if your business was primarily US-based beforehand. The supply chain is critical to a business’ success post-expansion; if your new location cannot receive stock, it will fail before you even have the chance to open the doors. 

An example of this would be Target’s brief launch in Canada, which was called a “multifaceted failure” by one retail analyst. The retailer struggled to fill its Canadian stores with stock; the stock it did have on shelves to sell failed to excite customers or was priced higher than in US stores.

If you can ensure your new shop in Toronto will receive the same stock as your US branches, you will have a better chance of success. This might mean you look at suppliers local to Toronto and optimizing your inventory management strategies. However you will also need to think about staffing – if any staff will be moved or need to visit the new location frequently – and customs.