One thing many businesses must do at some point is liquidate assets. In many cases, it means the end for employees as a business shuts down. In other cases, it may simply be part of a business’s transition to a new location.
Whatever the case, liquidation is a process that must be completed competently. This includes in the office. If you are an office manager, you may not be sure how to deal with an upcoming liquidation. Below are six tips to help the process run more smoothly.
Schedule Enough Time for It
Liquidating an office takes time. You need time to evaluate everything you have in your office like furniture and computers. You need time to disassemble those items and remove them from the office. Make sure you plan early and schedule the right amount of time for the work that needs to be done.
Consider Hiring Professionals
There are companies, like Pete’s Panels, that perform office liquidation for business clients. If you want to save yourself some effort, consider contracting with such a company to do the job. Professionals who do the job of liquidating an office often know how to complete it in the quickest and most efficient way possible.
Don’t Pay for a Separate Inventory Audit
Taking inventory should be part of the contract you agree to when you hire a company to liquidate your office. It should be part of any proposal. You shouldn’t pay for another third party to do that work. It will just be a waste of money.
Consider Costs When Deciding to Liquidate
In certain cases, the liquidation of an office is only occurring because the company is moving to another location. You may be tempted in that case to simply move all that furniture and equipment so it can be used at the new location. However, it may not be worth the moving and storage costs if all that furniture and equipment has depreciated in value. Liquidating it may actually be cheaper.
Liquidate It All in One Go
Others may think that selling an office’s furniture and other equipment piece by piece to different buyers may be the more profitable strategy. It often is not. Doing so can actually raise costs and cause the liquidation to drag on much longer than needed. Liquidating it all at once is usually the most efficient choice.
Use a Furniture Wholesaler
One choice you have when liquidating office furniture is using a furniture wholesaler or a furniture broker. Using a broker is a poor choice. The broker will not want to remove the furniture until they have sold it. This will not be the case when liquidating the furniture with a wholesaler.
Liquidating an office you and your employees once worked in can seem like drudgery. Thankfully, there are ways that you can make the process move along quickly without wasting money. Because the process can easily be drawn out, it’s important to make sure the job is done correctly the first time.
