July 15, 2026 — Central Florida (I-4 Corridor & Space Coast) new business activity

Central Florida recorded 2,462 new business filings the week of June 24 to 30, the lowest weekly count in three months.

The pullback was broad. Seven of the region's eight counties filed fewer businesses than the week before. Only Sumter rose, up 5 to 42.

Orange County stayed the biggest by far at 1,001 filings, down 50. Polk fell the hardest, down 109 to 345. Volusia (239), Osceola (237), Brevard (236), Seminole (191), and Lake (171) all slipped too. This was the second week in a row that filings fell, and the count came in below the same week last year.

Most large sectors cooled. Professional services still led with 376 new businesses. Property holding and asset protection followed at 277, then personal and other services at 208 and construction and trades at 198. One sector grew against the trend. Transportation and logistics added 17 to reach 148. Finance and insurance did the opposite, falling by more than half from 265 to 118.

Two cities went the other way from the region. Winter Garden rose 19 to 96, and Palm Bay rose 19 to 70. Lakeland fell the most, down 70 to 121.

Very little decline over the past 13 weeks with a dip this past week pulling the average down.

The bold line is the 13-week average. Read it for the longer trend. The thin line is each week's count, which swings week to week.

• 2025-26
• 2024-25
• 2023-24
• 2022-23
• 2021-22

New business formation usually runs highest around Mar and is quietest around Dec, holding near 12,500 a month across the years.

Each line is one year, ending at the current month on the right, so you can read the past year left to right. New Year's Day is left out because the state office is closed, so almost no businesses register that day.

Transportation & Logistics grew the most this week, 17 more (up 13.0%). Finance & Insurance dropped the most, 147 fewer (down 55.5%).

Orange led the region this week with 1,001 new filings. 1 other county also grew from the week before.

• Port Canaveral is nearly doubling Cruise Terminal 5 to about 170,000 square feet at a cost of $78 million. It is also adding a 13 story parking garage of about 3,700 spaces next to Cruise Terminal 6 at a cost of $93 million. The port puts the combined investment near $175 million and says it supports more than 2,000 jobs. A build this size feeds site work, concrete, steel, electrical, and paving crews now, then cleaning, security, and landscaping firms once it opens. The added cruise capacity also means more freight haulers, food suppliers, and passenger transport companies serving the terminals. This is the kind of demand behind the region's steady construction filings, 198 this week, and the rise in transportation and logistics, up 17 to 148. Port Canaveral (Canaveral Port Authority), 2026-07-14
• Osceola County landed a $470 million semiconductor plant at NeoCity from a South Korea based company. The county says it will bring more than 600 high wage jobs on a nearly 40 acre site, the largest private footprint in its tech district so far. A plant this large needs general contractors, concrete and steel, electrical, and specialized clean room fit out to build. Once running it buys ongoing waste management, security, janitorial, and IT services, plus accounting, insurance, and legal help for the plant and its suppliers. That points to work for the professional services (376) and administrative and support (176) firms forming across the region. Choose Osceola (Osceola County Economic Development), 2026-05-05
• Chick-fil-A Supply plans a 244,000 square foot logistics center in Winter Haven, in the Central Florida Integrated Logistics Park. Polk County's development council puts the investment above $150 million and expects about 180 new jobs. A distribution center this size lines up directly with the region's growth in transportation and logistics filings, up 17 to 148 this week. It creates work for warehouse builders and pavers first, then for freight and trucking companies, truck repair shops, fuel suppliers, and the janitorial and security firms that serve a large warehouse. Central Florida Development Council, 2026-06-19
• Green Ammo, a Norway based defense training company, opened its first U.S. office in Orlando at 4100 Silver Star Road. The Orlando Economic Partnership says the office starts with 10 jobs at an average salary near $100,000, serving the area's military simulation and training industry. A new office arrival like this needs commercial real estate, office build out, IT, accounting, and legal support to get running. It adds to the pool of fresh prospects for the professional services firms that led the region at 376 filings this week, especially those serving Orlando's simulation and defense sector. Orlando Economic Partnership, 2026-07-15
• Seminole County's Development Review Committee took up Balmy Cove, a plan for 36 townhomes on 8.82 acres off Balmy Beach Drive south of State Road 436, at its June 10 meeting. A townhome project this size means work for homebuilders and the trades behind them, including concrete, framing, roofing, plumbing, electrical, and HVAC crews. It also feeds real estate agents, title and insurance offices, and the landscaping and retail businesses new residents use. That demand sits behind the region's construction and trades (198) and real estate (126) filings. Seminole County Development Review Committee, 2026-06-10
• Space Florida and the Israel Innovation Authority awarded $600,000 to two aerospace projects, including $400,000 to MySky Eco of Port Orange to build traffic management software for autonomous aircraft. Funding like this backs Space Coast aerospace and software firms and the engineering and technical talent they hire. As those projects grow they lean on the region's technology and professional services companies for design, software, accounting, and legal work. Space Florida, 2026-07-01
• The City of St. Cloud's Development Review Committee took up a final plat for Bella Tara Phase 1, a plan for 223 single family and 138 multi family lots on about 638.78 acres south of Kissimmee Park Road, at its April 30 meeting. A subdivision this large is years of work for homebuilders and the trades behind them, including site work, concrete, framing, roofing, plumbing, electrical, and HVAC. It also feeds surveyors, engineers, real estate and title offices, landscapers, and the retail and personal services the new households will use. That kind of pipeline supports the region's construction and trades (198) and real estate (126) filings. City of St. Cloud Development Review Committee, 2026-04-30
• Sumter County commissioners adopted a new ordinance on June 9 that updates Chapter 13, the county's land development code, and the official zoning map, changing the rules developers and builders follow countywide. Rule changes like this shape what can be built and where, so they create fresh work for land use attorneys, engineers, surveyors, and permitting consultants who help builders and property owners meet the new code. Sumter was the one county to add filings this week, up 5 to 42, so local pros there have a small but growing base to serve. Sumter County Board of County Commissioners, 2026-06-09

A down week still leaves plenty for anyone selling to new businesses here. Filings fell to 2,462, but the projects moving through the region point one direction, building and moving goods. Port Canaveral's terminal work, the Chick-fil-A Supply warehouse in Winter Haven, and the NeoCity plant in Osceola all create demand for contractors, freight haulers, and the accounting, IT, insurance, and cleaning firms those operations buy from. Transportation and logistics was the one big sector that grew this week, up 17 to 148, and these projects are why that pipeline looks real. Professional services still lead the region at 376, so business to business firms have the widest pool of fresh prospects to reach.

These counts show new business filings officially recorded with the state for the eight counties of Central Florida. We wait about two weeks after each week ends so the state can finish recording every filing, so the counts here are complete and final. We compare each week to the week before and to the same week last year to show the trend.

Frequently asked questions

Why did filings drop this week?

The decline was broad. Seven of eight counties filed fewer businesses than the week before, and finance and insurance alone fell from 265 to 118. It was the second straight weekly decline and came in below the same week last year.

Which areas grew?

Sumter County rose to 42. Among cities, Winter Garden rose to 96 and Palm Bay rose to 70. Transportation and logistics was the one large sector to grow, up 17 to 148.

What is the biggest opportunity right now?

Building and logistics. Large projects like Port Canaveral's terminal expansion, the Chick-fil-A Supply warehouse in Winter Haven, and the NeoCity plant in Osceola create work for contractors, freight companies, and the professional services they rely on.