Hot Spot

The question for the perfect “Hot Spot” is one of the main topics which you will have to focus on when you enter a new market. A big part of the secret whether your business will be successful in the German market is linked to a well-considered choice of the perfect location and – to the very same extent – to the conclusion of a favourable lease agreement.

Make sure you are on the safe side and check your lease agreement:

• Does it provide sufficient financial, structural and legal flexibility to implement your name in the new market, realize your ideas and thus run your business in a successful and profitable way?
• Do you receive competition protection and the right to develop and run your store quite freely from the influence of your landlord?
• What about restrictions regarding your furniture and decoration or the duty to open and close the shop on certain days?
• Watch out for formal risks and defaults of your lease agreement as well as hidden costs such as administration fees and contractual penalties!
• Keep in mind that you do not know if you might want to extend your lease agreement or terminate it before the fixed term is over!

Always keep the worst case in mind – rent is high and you might have a contractual duty to run your shop every day over a period of 10 years or more. If economic circumstances are changing you may want to have an option to discontinue your store very quickly. Most of the standard lease agreements will not allow an extraordinary termination or a sublease of your store.

Due to our wide expertise in the retail market, we can offer you all the support you need to solve any issues you might face in the course of your entry to the German market. And we can do even more: We can bring you in touch with the best real estate agents, location planners, furnishers and recruitment agencies. Thus contact our lease experts to ensure that your German business will become a “Hot Spot”!