Ask any business, and the standard by which they measure themselves is their ability to survive in the city, the great urban jungle. All tech startups dream of bringing their companies to Silicon Valley just as many retail shops want someday to be in Rodeo Drive or Madison Avenue. It’s the ultimate test for your entrepreneurship to survive the city. But, some dangers lurk in urban areas. Are you sure your business has what it takes?
Competition
Big businesses in the cities eat small businesses for breakfast. They are relentless. How did they manage to survive the competition if they are not? That’s what you are looking at when you bring your business to the cities—massive competition. Every corner there, you can find the same business as yours. Sometimes, you’re better. Most of the time, you’re just another store vying for the market’s attention.
How competitive is your business? How unique are your products and services? To survive competition in the cities, you have to be better than the businesses already there. That’s what you are fighting against. Before bringing your business there, know where you stand and understand that it won’t be that easy.
Physical Dangers
When someone burglarizes your store in the province and smaller towns, you know immediately how to handle it. If they do their jobs, the police usually find the criminal in a day or two. You might even have a suspect in mind and decide to handle it on your own. It’s a small-town thing, and businesses usually feel safe in small towns than in big cities.
Aside from criminality, there is also the issue of demonstrations, mobilizations, and rallies. From time to time, civic groups will have to take to the streets to protest social, political, and economic policies. It is not always safe for businesses to be in the center of it all. You are trying to run a business and not make public your political stand. But in many cases, you will be thrust in the middle of a rally or protest when you’re in the city.
While you can get armed or unarmed guard services for your business, it isn’t always that easy. It’s an added expense and one you are not ready to shell out money for. Besides, guards or no guards, no business owner wants to deal with violence in the workplace.
Payables and Liabilities
Obviously, office rent is more expensive in the city and other utility bills such as the internet, cable, telephone, water, and gas. Bringing your business to the city means facing these expenses, too. Are you sure your pockets are ready? There is no assurance that business will boom once you enter the market there, but the expenses will double, that’s for sure.
It’s not only the expenses of operating the business that will be more expensive. The salaries of the workers will be higher than in rural areas, too. In New York, the minimum wage is $22.15 per hour. In Los Angeles, it’s $19.51 per hour. Do you know how much it is in Maine? Around $12. It’s even lower in other parts like Kansas, Maryland, and Minnesota.
Pollution
The spread of the coronavirus happened in the city of Wuhan in China’s Hubei Province. It is the largest and most populous city in central China. The virus spread easier in the city because it is densely populated. Tourists also frequent it. But that’s just one tiny example.
Cities also suffer from low air quality, which means you are also putting your health at risk by being there. Your employees are also at risk of catching colds and cough, which makes absenteeism a problem for most businesses. A study said air pollution is costing G20 countries between 2% to 10% of their gross domestic product. If large businesses are investing in air purifying devices for their workers’ health, you will have to do it, too.
These reasons, however, should not discourage you from dreaming of moving your business to urban areas. Sure, you might be better off in your small town, but your business will grow, and that growth means expanding operations to the cities. However, the dangers discussed above should warn you that it will not be a walk in the park. You should be prepared, much more than you were when you first started your business. Being in the city is no joke. Living, working, and running a business are for the toughest of the lot.
