July 7, 2026 — Tampa Bay (Gulf Coast) new business activity

New business filings across the Tampa Bay area slowed to 2,883 the week of June 16 to 22, below the week before but still ahead of the same week last year.

The slowdown reached most kinds of business at once. Finance and insurance starts fell to 206, real estate to 120, and food and lodging to 155, each below the week before. Property holding and asset protection, the single largest group, eased to 471. No one sector drove the dip.

A few pools of new owners still grew. Professional services edged up to 437 and stayed among the largest groups. Construction and trades rose to 218. Wholesale and distribution grew the most, up 22 to 63 new starts.

The map held its usual shape. Pinellas County led with 1,276 new filings and Hillsborough followed with 887. Those two hold most of the region's new owners. St. Petersburg added 16 to reach 866, one of the few cities to grow, while Tampa eased to 618.

The softer week still sits ahead of a year ago. New starts came in 194 above the same week in 2025, when 2,689 formed. That leaves a bigger pool of brand new owners to reach than last summer.

No significant change over the past 13 weeks.

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.

Wholesale & Distribution grew the most this week, 22 more (up 53.7%). Property Holding & Asset Protection dropped the most, 41 fewer (down 8.0%). Several smaller sectors also grew.

Pinellas led the region this week with 1,276 new filings.

• Tampa International Airport reported that its new Airside D terminal reached a construction milestone, with the concrete cores for most of its elevators set in place as the 600,000 square foot, $1.528 billion building rises toward a 2028 finish and a 2029 opening. A build this size keeps concrete, steel, elevator, and electrical crews busy for years. It also feeds site work, equipment rental, and the accounting and insurance those contractors buy. It lines up with construction and trades starts, up to 218 this week. Tampa International Airport, 2026-04-21
• Port Tampa Bay took delivery of two new large container cranes, bringing its fleet to six, as part of a plan to grow its container terminal to 100 acres with a third deep water berth and a rail transfer yard on the docks. More container capacity means more cargo to haul, store, and distribute. That opens work for trucking and freight firms, warehouse operators, packers, and customs help. It coincides with the jump in wholesale and distribution starts, up 22 to 63 this week. Port Tampa Bay, 2026-04-29
• Manatee County development records show a combined subdivision and site plan moving forward for Bradenton Bourneside, a master commercial and mixed use development at the southwest corner of State Road 64 and Bourneside Boulevard in Bradenton. A new commercial center draws site work and paving crews first, then the retail, food, and personal service tenants that fill it, plus the bookkeeping, insurance, and cleaning firms they hire. It fits the steady pace of professional services and construction starts across the region. Manatee County Development Services, 2026-06-21
• Manatee County received a site plan for Technology Terrace Vehicle Repair in the Lakewood Ranch area of Bradenton, a new 18,214 square foot office and vehicle repair building with paving, utilities, and stormwater work. A new shop like this means work for the builders and trades that put it up, and once open it adds an auto service business that buys parts, tools, and insurance locally. It adds to the region's construction and trades pipeline. Manatee County Development Services, 2026-06-07
• Manatee County records show a planned development moving ahead for Got Concrete in Palmetto, adding a concrete batch plant on part of the property under an approved site plan. A concrete plant supplies the ready mix that local builders pour for foundations, slabs, and roads, so it feeds construction and the trucking that hauls the material. It lines up with steady construction starts and the rise in wholesale and distribution. Manatee County Development Services, 2026-06-14
• Manatee County received a site plan for US Tent in southern Manatee County, a 7.06 acre project building a 5 acre pad for outdoor storage of materials with two stormwater ponds. An outdoor storage yard gives suppliers and contractors room to hold materials and equipment, and building it out means paving and site work now. It supports the wholesale, distribution, and construction trades forming across the region. Manatee County Development Services, 2026-06-07

This was a softer week, but the pool of new owners is still bigger than a year ago, so there are more first handshakes to make than last summer. The best openings are in the operating businesses that grew. Professional services stayed among the largest groups and edged up to 437, and new firms there need accounting, legal, insurance, and IT help right away. Construction and trades held up. The big projects in the pipeline point to steady work for builders and the suppliers behind them, from the airport terminal to a new port crane yard to fresh commercial ground in Manatee. Wholesale and distribution grew the most, so freight, warehousing, and trucking firms have a widening set of prospects. Most new owners sit in Pinellas and Hillsborough, so time spent there reaches the most of them.

These counts come from new business filings recorded with the state for the seven county Tampa Bay area, grouped by kind of business and by county. We wait about two weeks after a week ends for the state to finish recording every filing, so the numbers here are complete and final, not an early estimate. Industry groups use plain everyday labels rather than official codes.

Frequently asked questions

Was this a good week or a slow one for new businesses in Tampa Bay?

It was a slower week. New filings fell 7.3% from the week before. Still, the count ran 7.2% ahead of the same week a year ago, so the pool of new owners is bigger than last summer.

Which kinds of business are still growing?

Professional services stayed near the top at 437 new starts. Wholesale and distribution grew the most, up 22 to 63. Construction and trades rose to 218.

Where are the new businesses forming?

Mostly in Pinellas County, with 1,276 new filings, and Hillsborough County, with 887. St. Petersburg led the cities at 866.