Assignment Task:
Karen May, a single parent, is starting a food catering and event decorating business. To save money, she intends to operate the new venture out of her house in upstate New York. Initially, her services would focus on planning for wedding receptions and other special events, designing floral arrangements, decorating the venues, and even cooking and serving meals.
She is concerned that her home may be too far away from the larger cities from which she is likely to get most of her business and that her kitchen equipment will not be adequate to support the catering side of her work. Also, being in a rural area, she is worried about finding an adequate labor supply. May realizes that renting a commercial space in town would alleviate some of these concerns, but since she has limited funds, she decides to give her home-based location a try.
Consider this chapter's discussion of the key factors in selecting a good location.
Q1. What are the key attributes of choosing a good business location?
Q2. Which of these would probably be most important for a retail location? Why?
Q3. Is the hometown of a business owner likely to be a good location?
Q4. Is it logical for an owner to allow personal preferences to influence a decision about business location?
Q5. What suggestions do you have for Karen?