Building and operating·FindingConfirmed

Companies that file another type of planning application are more than twice as likely to open a new establishment

Of the 3,906 companies with another type of planning application, 4.9% also had a new establishment between October 2025 and September 2026, against 2.2% among similar companies. The source only covers 671,780 companies with their registered office in Flanders; the comparison stays within that group.

New establishment between October 2025 and September 2026

Both measurements combined · 3,906 companies

After another type of planning application4.9%

Similar companies2.2%

2.3×

as often as among similar companies.

95% interval: 2.0× to 2.6×
Companies: 3,906
Measurements: 2, independent

Source: Hunch Lab, cohort study within 671,780 companies with their registered office in Flanders. Compared within sector, size and age, with companies active in the same period.hunchleads.com/en/lab

Does it hold up?

Each measurement uses different companies and a different period. A link only counts if it shows up in both.

Measurement	Period	With the event	Similar	Factor
Measurement 1	event Oct 2024–Mar 2025, outcome Oct 2025–Sep 2026	5.1%	2.2%	2.4×
Measurement 2	event Apr–Sep 2025, outcome Oct 2025–Sep 2026	4.7%	2.2%	2.1×

By sector

The sectors with the most companies in the test, both measurements combined.

Sector	Companies	With the event	Similar	Factor
Construction	549	1.82%	1.09%	1.7×
Professional services	338	2.7%	1.6%	1.6×
Wholesale and retail	290	14.8%	3.4%	4.4×

By size class

Full-time equivalents from the latest annual accounts. Employer: staff registered with the NSSO, headcount unknown.

Size	Companies	With the event	Comparable	Factor
No staff	1,860	0.86%	0.50%	1.7×
Employer, headcount unknown	1,201	8.2%	3.4%	2.4×

How often does this happen?

Belgian companies with the event, per month, over the last twelve complete months.

Other planning application389 a month on average

New establishment764 a month on average

More on other planning application

6 other findings

FindingWith the eventSimilarFactorResult

Companies that file another type of planning application are more than four times as likely to apply for a new-build permitBuilding and operating17.7%4.3%4.1×Confirmed Companies that file another type of planning application are four times as likely to apply for a renovation or extension permitBuilding and operating8.5%2.1%4.0×Confirmed Companies that file another type of planning application are three times as likely to apply for an environmental permitBuilding and operating19.4%6.6%2.9×Confirmed Companies that file another type of planning application are almost three times as likely to open a site in another municipalityBuilding and operating3.9%1.5%2.6×Confirmed Companies that file another type of planning application are less likely to grow their workforce strongly NewBuilding and operating3.5%6.3%0.55×Provisional

All findings on other planning application

Technical note

Methodology

Design: Retrospective cohort study
Population studied: 671,780 companies with their registered office in Flanders
Comparison group: Companies without the event that had another publication or event in the same entry period (active group), from the same stratum: NACE section, size class and age class; indirect standardisation
Cohorts: event Oct 2024–Mar 2025, outcome Oct 2025–Sep 2026; event Apr–Sep 2025, outcome Oct 2025–Sep 2026
Observed and expected: 193 cases, 86 expected
Factor (95% interval): 2.3× (2.0× to 2.6×)
Multiple testing: q < 0.001 (Benjamini-Hochberg)
Second measurement: p < 0.001
Other comparison groups: economically active companies 3.0× (2.6× to 3.4×); all companies 3.2× (2.7× to 3.6×)
Absolute difference: 2.7 percentage points; following 36 companies with the event yields one extra case
Size of the groups: active 61,081, economically active 193,774, all 671,780 companies
Strata: 82 strata of at least 300 companies (section × size × age; smaller strata merged)
Data up to: September 2026

Cite this findingFree to reuse with attribution (CC BY 4.0).

Hunch Lab (2026). Companies that file another type of planning application are more than twice as likely to open a new establishment. Data up to September 2026. https://hunchleads.com/en/lab/vg-overig-nieuwe-vestiging

Figures for this finding (CSV)

About Hunch Lab

Hunch Lab is the research programme of Hunch. Every finding is free to reuse with attribution. Questions are welcome.

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