You have enough to worry about inside your retail location: store layout, inventory, point-of-sale efficiency, shoplifters, and on and on. If you’re satisfied with your rent and location, good for you.

Yet, if you’re like many retailers I work with, you’re concerned about competition from big-box retailers and chain stores affecting your earning potential. In this blog, I constantly stress the importance of setting your store apart through great merchandising, niche product selection, customer service and other key criteria. If you’ve done all that and still aren’t happy with the results, it might be time to consider a move.

While moving can be an expensive pain, I’m encouraged by stories about retailers from Victoria, British Columbia to Frederick County, Maryland, working with their communities to create new shopping areas and reinvigorate older ones. I see the same thread running through most of them, as the Victoria story points out: “The idea is to attract…tenants who will enhance the social fabric of the community.” And in Maryland, the renovation of a 57-year-old shopping center is exciting retailers, architects and the community alike.

With municipal governments and developers offering financial incentives to would-be tenants, this could be a great time to set your store apart even further. The move itself can be a time of excitement and reinvigoration for your business. If you have a solid customer base, include them in the moving “festivities.” Keep them apprised of the move-in/move-out dates, then offer promotions, discounts, contests and other reasons to stay loyal to you.

It isn’t hard to gather information about relocation opportunities in your region. Hop on the Web and mine information from Google, municipal sites, online newspapers, etc. Once you make the decision to go forward, it should be a move in the right direction for you and your customers.