Finding a retail location for rent is one of the most difficult things to about commercial real estate. It may not seem like that to the casual observer, but in practice, there’s much more than meets the eye.

Let’s start at the beginning

There’s a broadly held negative connotation with large, national and global retail chains and on multiple levels. Take for example McDonald’s. You have the trope of McDonald’s being simultaneously the embodiment of the worst job a person can have (i.e. “burger-flipper”), the least healthy meal a person could eat (i.e. Super Size Me), and as a symbol of American neo-imperialism in terms of their seeming ubiquity (i.e. The Big Mac index).

That’s not at all how CRE landlords see the McDonald’s of the world. That’s not how they businesses like The Vitamin Shoppe or Supercuts or any other big name company either. Landlords see those brands as rock solid tenants. They view those companies as long running, proven businesses which will attract foot traffic to the other stores in their complex. That spells dependable rent to any landlord with a retail location for rent.

Retail Location For Rent — Percentage Leases

If that competition wasn’t enough, it’s common for retail leases to be percentage leases. What this means is that landlords get a percentage of their tenant’s monthly sales on top of the base rent. Because of this, landlords have access to their tenant’s financials and can anticipate if/when they are going to fail. The result is that landlords can start looking for new tenants to replace the ones that are doing poorly – without ever having to put their retail location for rent on the market. The long and short of it is that there are fundamental reasons why the best retail spaces for lease almost never have vacancies.

Elbow Grease

If the words of Lord Harold Samuel are true — the three most important things in real estate are “location, location, location”, then how in the world is a mom-and-pop retailer ever supposed to rent a decent retail location? The answer: you gotta be really really flipping proactive.

Now, I promised you 3 steps to successfully find a killer retail location for rent, and I am a man of my word:

Step 1 — Get your mallards in a row!

If you want to compete with Five Guys, or some equally well known franchise in securing a top retail location for rent, it’s not going to be a passive endeavor. In the words of DJ Paul, Juicy J, and Bizzle: you’ll have to get your business “game tight like Kobe on game night”.

You’ll need to show the landlord that you have plenty of money in the bank. Enough to get you through the first year of a startup retail business. That means lots of money. Enough cash for all of your equipment and improvements to the space. First, Last and up to 6 months rent for a deposit. You’ll need to show you’ve run a retail before, or some other relevant and successful managerial/entrepreneurial experience.

To do this, you’ll need to have a very detailed business plan and pitch deck. In short, you’ll need to make a solid case to the landlord; that you’ve got what it takes to probably not fail immediately and that you’re going to be a good bet for them.

Step 2 — Reach out and schmooze someone

Outreach is key. Sure, you’ll need to look through available retail location for rent listings online (like at getdigsy.com hint hint). You’ll also need to call, email, and knock on the doors of landlords that own the retail locations where you want to have your business. Armed with your well aligned ducks (see step 1), you’ll want to establish a relationship with the landlords (and/or their listing agents) of the places you want to have your business. This way you’ll have a chance at finding out about a rad retail location for rent before it’s available.

Step 3 — Rinse and Repeat

Get feedback on your business plan and pitch. Then, iterate on that input. Save money so you’re better prepared once you do find a sweet retail location for rent. If you’re a new business try selling your handy work online, at farmers markets, anywhere you can. You’ll be able to use those profit and loss numbers in your business plan and pitch. Plus, you can use what you learn selling to your product to focus on producing the items your customers buy most (and which you sell for a healthy profit). Keep calling, emailing, and getting to know those listing agents and landlords.

Step 4 — Protip

Our Digsy experts always help tenants to get those ducks in a row and lock down our clients’ ideal retail location for rent. We advocate for you and your business to landlords, and do all of the heavy lifting; calling, scheduling tours, negotiating, et al. They’ll help you understand, with respect to your particular business, what you should focus on in Step 1, and then do Step 2 and Step 3 for you so you can build your business.

The kicker: it doesn’t cost your business anything — It’s Free! Get started now: Digsy