It can be incredibly gratifying to open your first independent pharmacy and finally see your hard work being rewarded. As you start to hit certain milestones and levels of success, it’s only natural for an entrepreneur to begin thinking about a second location or beyond.
Of course, this is easier said than done. Many obstacles and challenges can come with opening a second business location, and it’s also going to be much more difficult from a management and logistical perspective. You should make sure that you have enough money to open a second pharmacy – but what else should you be thinking about? Here are some things to consider regarding how to manage multiple business locations.
Stepping Back
No entrepreneur can be in two places at once. If you are a business owner that often finds yourself micromanaging everything, then opening another location may have to wait for a while. Entrepreneurs should always be prepared to delegate more as they expand, and this logic also applies to independent pharmacy chains.
Your employees have to feel like they can be trusted, and micromanaging employees can be exhausting for you – and damage employee morale. You won’t be able to monitor every employee at any given time, and you should be okay with “stepping back” a bit and letting your hand-picked management team take the reins. However, it’s essential to set clear expectations with your managers so that they understand their roles, as well.
Some business owners end up thinking about their business every hour that they are awake, and it’s easy to “burn out” after some time. Clearly, you won’t be able to manage your time as you did with only one location. If one location is already stressing you out and you aren’t ready to delegate because you haven’t found the right people, then you may want to rethink opening a second pharmacy.
The Right Timing
One of the most important aspects of opening a second business location is when and how you plan on opening it. For example, if you have a small pharmacy in a quiet part of town, you may have thought about expanding to a more populated location – but have you established that there is a demand? Have you done your due diligence and determined that the location could potentially be a success? What about competition in those areas from big box stores or other community pharmacies? Are the demographics for customers similar to who you serve at your first location or will you have to rethink what you offer for services and products – or even the hours that you might be expected to have the business be open?
There may be other challenges. You may find that you have to spend more money on permits/licenses than you thought, or a need to upgrade equipment at your current location may upset your cash flow.
Timing also isn’t just about money or cash flow – it’s also about the people around you. Have you hired people you can trust and are willing to define their roles and delegate to them? Can you trust them to maintain your customer and business standards at your current location? If yes, then you have more of an opportunity to focus on opening a second location.
