Business Environment and Innovation Ecosystem

The Olomouc Region is characterised by a fairly high concentration of traditional industries, notably production of pulp, paper and related products; manufacture and repair of machinery; and the food-processing industry. In addition to these traditional sectors, manufacturing of electrical and optical equipment plays an important role in the local economy. Also, food-processing and engineering industries (especially pump engineering has a long tradition) are concentrated in and around Olomouc. These traditional branches frequently build on specific experience and knowledge accumulated by the skilled local workforce over many long years of practice, as well as on the tradition of corporate culture and invention. Local industrial enterprises are usually smaller. There are virtually no large private companies (over 1,000 employees) in Olomouc, and medium-sized establishments (250 to 1,000 employees) are mostly in the public sector.

Due to Olomouc’s role as an administrative centre and its position in the heart of Moravia, the public services sector is well developed, represented by high quality educational, healthcare and social establishments, offering services to the entire district and beyond. Commercial services are mostly utilised by local inhabitants. Olomouc has become a regional shopping centre, as numerous retail chains have built outlets here. Logistic companies are attracted by the suitable location of Olomouc and its surroundings.

Olomouc is a strategic location attracting investors in the area of business shared services (BSS), not only due to its strategic location in the centre of Moravia and excellent transport connections, but also ample facilities in the form of vacant office spaces, a high number of university alumni with foreign language educations, and a highly qualified and educated workforce. More than 15 international business services centres operate in Olomouc. This industry is one of the most important employers in the Olomouc Region and will continue to grow thanks to the construction of new modern office complexes. For instance, 2021 saw the completion of the Envelopa Office Center, a modern office building in the centre of Olomouc offering 15 000 square metres of leasable area. Also, another stage of the construction of the BEA campus is being developed under the name of BEA City Business Residence. This new site will provide facilities for expert companies and educational institutions that will contribute to regional economic development. The campus is set to be completed in 2024. In addition to administrative buildings, development activities also focus on residential projects as well as multifunctional and business centres.

The successful completion of construction of Pavelkova, Keplerova, and Šlechtitelů urban business zones, which are now fully occupied, was followed by the occurrence of mostly foreign investors. The entry of foreign investment has resulted in the support of mechanical, electrical, and printing industries.

Mixed production areas, as well as brownfields, are suitable for further development of other business activities in the city. Basic information about these locations is available to prospective investors and entrepreneurs in map applications at https://opendata.olomouc.eu/pages/aplikace.

A Point of Single Contact was established at the Olomouc Town Hall in order to help people establish private businesses in both the Czech Republic and EU markets by providing information, free consultancy and expertise in delivering services. More information is available at the https://www.olomouc.eu/podnikatel/zivnostenske-podnikani/jednotne-kontaktni-misto website.

Despite taking out a new loan, the city has been successful in keeping total debt below the limit set by the budgetary responsibility legislation, thus remaining in the zone of “appropriate budgetary responsibility”. The Statutory City of Olomouc has had a stable interest rating in the long term – in 2024, it received “Long-Term Rating = A1, Outlook = Stable” by Moody’s Ratings. Thanks to significant advances in the business environment, the City of Olomouc won the regional round of the Top City for Business comparative research in 2022 and 2023.

The VGP Park at Olomouc-Hněvotín, located at an attractive site nearby a junction with the motorway to Brno, is a unique development location in the Olomouc Region. Developed by VGP – industriální stavby s. r. o., the zone currently offers 215 906 m2 of manufacturing and warehousing premises in new rental halls. This industrial zone provides facilities for production or expanding companies like John Crane, a. s., SGB Czech Trafo s. r. o., BENTELER ČR s. r. o. and Edwards s. r. o. State-of-the-art premises for logistics and light manufacturing in rental halls are also available at P3 Olomouc owned by PointPark Properties, others are currently being developed at EAST PARK Olomouc-Bystrovany where seven individual manufacturing and storage buildings and a supply yard will be constructed on a plot of more than 200 000 m². The first several buildings was completed in 2023.