A broad offering

Ghent counts more than 6,000 retail, hotel and catering businesses. That is approximately a fourth of all businesses in Ghent. About 5,800 people work in physical goods retail and 3,200 in the hotel and catering industry, which together accounts for 6% of work opportunities in Ghent. A wide-range of retail businesses offer a broad assortment of products across 14 different sectors.

Dense shopping area 

In the center of Ghent and within the inner ring road, you will find many clothing businesses and a vast amount of hotels, restaurants and cafés. The main street in Ghent's shopping area is the Veldstraat, which runs through the heart of the city center. It leads the visitor along historical buildings, market places and squares to other big shopping areas.

New projects

Some projects currently in development offer new possibilities for the retail industry in Ghent. The Loop is the name of an area in the city where in the coming years, 69,000 m² will become available for retail. The Arteveldeproject, built around a new football stadium, will in 2009 offer 12,000 m² of space for retail businesses. The renovation of Ghent Sint-Pieters station will make 20,000 m² available for shops and recreation.