Feasibility study

The problem

You have an intention, possibly a unit, and a chain of questions: how many activities fit, which ones, in what order, for which audience, at what cost, in how long. Until those answers exist, no lender follows and no lease should be signed.

The usual mistake is to start with the concept. Concepts are easy to draw; what decides the project is usable floor area, rent, available footfall and the staff you will pay for twelve months a year.

What the study covers

• Analysis of the unit or units under consideration: real usable area, height, technical and regulatory constraints, foreseeable running cost.
• Programming: which activities, how many units, what footprint, what staffing, what session slots.
• Scaled layout plan, with circulation, waiting areas and storage.
• Capital budget, line by line.
• Project schedule through to opening.
• Identified risks, written down plainly, including the ones that call the project into question.

How it runs

A first call to frame the ambition and the available budget. A site visit, or analysis of the drawings if the unit is not yet chosen. Two to three weeks of work. A presentation on video or on site, document in hand. One round of adjustments included.

What the study does not do

It does not guarantee profitability. Nobody can do that honestly, and the payback periods advertised by some suppliers have not been measured. It sets out the assumptions, costs them and makes them arguable. That is exactly what a funder expects.