Wanted: A Unicorn. Salary: Negotiable (Downwards)

Imagine you're opening a business in Cambridge.

You've found a beautiful shopfront. Big windows, plenty of people walking past and a location that would look terrific on your website.

You can already picture the opening day.

Then somebody shows you another property.

It's down a side street. The frontage is smaller. Nobody would describe it as prime retail space.

And here's the interesting question.

What if the second property is actually the better business opportunity?

Not because it's automatically cheaper or because the high street is finished.

But because the best location for a business isn't always the one with the most people walking past.

It's the one that helps the right customers find you, buy from you and come back.

The shop that doesn't need passing trade

Think about the last time you travelled somewhere specifically to buy something.

Perhaps it was a specialist food shop, a particular hairdresser, an independent bookshop or a restaurant somebody recommended.

You didn't wander past by accident.

You went because you wanted what they offered.

That's the difference between a business that depends heavily on passing trade and one that gives customers a reason to make the journey.

A shop selling everyday convenience products may need a prominent location.

A specialist retailer with products people can't easily find elsewhere may have more flexibility.

The question changes from:

How many people walk past this door?

To:

How many people would make a point of coming through it?

And that's a much more interesting business to build.

Cambridge has more than one kind of customer

Cambridge isn't one enormous shopping street.

There are neighbourhood centres, residential areas, business parks, villages and smaller shopping areas serving different communities.

A business that wants tourists and occasional visitors may value a central location.

One serving repeat local customers might benefit from being closer to where those customers live.

A professional service whose clients book appointments may have little need for an expensive shop window.

And a specialist business might find that accessibility, parking, public transport or proximity to complementary businesses matters more than sheer footfall.

None of those factors guarantees success.

But they give business owners more options than simply competing for the most prominent available premises.

Make the journey part of the attraction

Here's where a less obvious location can become an advantage.

If customers aren't going to discover you accidentally, give them something worth discovering.

For a café, that could mean a distinctive menu, a welcoming atmosphere or becoming a favourite meeting place for a particular community.

For a specialist retailer, it might be knowledgeable staff, unusual products, demonstrations or events.

For a service business, it could be easy booking, excellent communication and a reputation that makes customers happy to travel a little further.

You don't need to invent an elaborate experience.

Sometimes being exceptionally good at one thing is enough to make people remember you.

The important part is giving customers a reason to choose you deliberately.

What if your neighbours could become your marketing department?

A business doesn't always have to attract customers entirely on its own.

Imagine a small group of complementary businesses close to one another.

A hairdresser, a beauty therapist and a café.

A specialist food shop near a cookery school.

A children's activity business close to other family services.

Each attracts people with overlapping interests.

That creates opportunities for recommendations, joint events and introductions.

Not every partnership will work, and businesses need to choose collaborators carefully.

But a less prominent location surrounded by the right neighbours could offer something a prestigious address doesn't: a community of businesses helping customers discover one another.

A recommendation from somebody a customer already trusts can be a powerful reason to visit.

The appointment-only advantage

Not every business needs to be open to passing customers all day.

Consider a consultant, a specialist retailer, a beauty professional or a business offering one-to-one appointments.

If customers book in advance, the premises can be chosen around a different set of priorities.

Privacy.

Convenience.

Accessibility.

Room to work.

A comfortable experience.

The ability to offer appointments at times customers actually want.

A ground-floor shopfront on a busy street might be lovely, but it may not be essential.

For some businesses, a well-chosen studio, office or shared workspace could make more sense.

Of course, the premises must be suitable for the intended use, and any lease, planning, licensing or other requirements still need checking.

But the traditional shopfront isn't the only model available.

Before signing, ask a different question

Instead of beginning with the property, begin with the customer.

Where do they come from?

How do they normally discover businesses like yours?

Do they need to see your premises while passing, or are they likely to search, book or ask for a recommendation?

Will they visit regularly?

Do they need parking, convenient public transport or step-free access?

Could you share facilities or work alongside complementary businesses?

And what would you do to make your business somewhere people actively want to visit?

These questions won't make a poor location magically successful.

They will, however, help distinguish a property that looks impressive from one that genuinely supports the business.

The best address might surprise you

There's nothing wrong with wanting a beautiful Cambridge shopfront.

For some businesses, a prominent high-street position is exactly the right decision.

But it shouldn't be the automatic decision.

A less obvious address can offer opportunities to build a destination, develop a loyal following and create a business that doesn't depend entirely on whoever happens to walk past.

The challenge is making sure customers have a reason to seek you out.

Because sometimes the smartest property decision isn't finding the place everybody can see.

It's creating the business everybody wants to find.