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Relocating a business for personal reasons is one option frequently available only to entrepreneurs. If it’s your business, you can pick up and move it just about anywhere.

Ernest Oriente, a business coach, recently moved his family and business from Irvine to Park City, Utah. Oriente, a former publishing and advertising executive, created Power Hour, a virtual business coaching company that serves clients across the country. The move most people dream about allows him to spend more time with his family and to realize their dream of living in a ski resort.

“I knew that if I could develop a virtual company, I could live wherever I wanted,” said Oriente, who entered the field of business coaching in 1995. Conducted entirely through electronic communication, Oriente’s business helps individuals and organizations balance their professional ambitions with their personal goals.

“All my work is done by fax, e-mail and phone,” said Oriente. “With a few dollars invested in technology, you can live, work and play anywhere in the world you want.”

Best of all, he said, “because of technology, the move was transparent. We closed on a Wednesday and were back open on Monday.” Power Hour’s former phone and fax lines have recordings referring callers to the new numbers for one year. New phone and fax lines were installed in advance, and the post office was alerted well before the move. Oriente posted moving updates on his Web site, and also posted an automated address change.

The Orientes’ relocation to Utah involved a meticulous three-year planning process. The move to the tony ski area was only possible after his coaching practice reached $400,000 in annual revenues.

“I am much more attractive to my clients because I am living what I teach,” he said, adding that he now works three days a week to take advantage of his new lifestyle in Utah.

In 1997, Matt Bearson and his family decided to leave Los Angeles for the rolling hills of Marin County in Northern California. Friends and customers were surprised because his specialty furniture store, 100% Rocking Chairs, was at the top of its game. The store, which sold only rocking chairs, found a lucrative niche in the Los Angeles maternity market, with 1996 revenues topping $500,000 the best in its nine-year history.

“A lot of friends thought I was crazy to walk away from a business I was doing so well with,” said Bearson, who thought he’d have no problem finding a buyer for his quirky business.

Unfortunately, he was wrong. Unable to find a buyer, he said, “we just sold everything and walked away.”

Bearson spent a year and a half exploring other opportunities and enjoying the slower pace of life in Marin County. He hadn’t intended to reopen his store in Marin, but decided to do it when nothing else seemed more appealing.

However, he made substantial changes before opening the new store. He wrote an employee training manual, created a Web site and changed the name of the store to Rocking Chairs 100%, to make it easier to find in the Yellow Pages. He converted the product descriptions he devised for the Web site into detailed and informative price tags that help employees and customers better understand the product.

“These are things I would have never gotten around to doing in L.A.,” said Bearson, who opened Rocking Chairs 100% two months ago at the Corte Madera Town Center. Based on sales for his first six weeks in business, Bearson projects sales of around $700,000 this year better than in Los Angeles.

For Bearson, reopening his store involved the daunting challenge of finding a new location. He had moved from a greater Los Angeles customer base of 7 million people to an area with a population of only 250,000. However, Marin is an upscale area where people are willing to pay hundreds of dollars for a rocking chair. He also had to pay much more in rent to capture the foot traffic in a popular, open-air mall.

Next, he had to rebuild his inventory. Though he met with some resistance from the vendors he’d done business with before, his solid reputation helped him get his foot back in the door.

“I didn’t leave a trail of debt,” he said. “I paid everyone when I closed up the last time.”

It also helped that he was prepared to place large orders. Part of his business strategy is to invest upfront in inventory. Bearson’s mall lease provides him with warehouse space. “It’s important to me to have the merchandise on-hand. I can close more sales than if I have to order it,” said Bearson. “It’s worth it to me to pay the interest rates if I can close the sales.”

Bearson placed his factory orders before he had even signed a lease on a new location, so he wouldn’t waste time paying rent on an empty store. Yellow Pages and other advertising were placed months before he opened. Finally, Bearson created a Web site, www.rocking-chairs.com, that encourages customers to call toll-free at 1-800-4-ROCKER and speak with him or a sales associate instead of blindly ordering online. The site also helps draw customers from San Francisco, Berkeley and Oakland.

“They come with a purchase in mind. They know it won’t be a wasted trip,” he said.

Sacrificing a successful business for the sake of personal and lifestyle happiness may seem gutsy to the point of foolish, but for Bearson, it’s paid off with his reinvented venture.

If you are thinking of relocating your business, here are some tips:

? Do your homework. Figure out where you want to live and whether your business can flourish there.

? Work with a good real estate broker to find the right location.

? Make sure the new location has all the services you need to operate your business, including shipping, rail service or warehousing.

? If you have to travel, make sure there are airports nearby.

? About six months before the move, alert your clients and customers. If you can’t continue serving them, refer them to other vendors and suppliers.

? Make sure your phone numbers, fax numbers and e-mail accounts are up and running in the new location before you move.

Jane Applegate is a syndicated columnist and author of “201 Great Ideas for Your Small Business.” For more resources, visit [email protected].