Glossary — what the metrics mean

Terms from A to Z

GISA Gewerbeinformationssystem Austria

The central registration database of all trades practised in Austria, maintained by the BMAW. Every month an anonymised extract (OgdAufrechteGewerbeberechtigung) is published on data.gv.at under CC-BY 4.0 — the basis of every count on this site.

Trade code 4-digit trade ID (Gewerbeschlüssel)

Every type of trade has a unique numeric code in GISA (e.g. 2201 = hairdresser, 5010 = hospitality, 301 = baker). Under one code, different wordings of the trade licence may be recorded that all describe the same occupation.

Location An active trade licence at a place

We count only active locations, not dormant or deregistered trades. A company with branches appears multiple times; a branch office without its own trade licence does not.

Density per 10,000 Locations ÷ residents × 10,000

The central comparison metric. It makes large regions (Favoriten, 200,000 residents) fairly comparable with small ones (Josefstadt, 25,000). Without this normalisation, big cities would always appear more crowded, even though per capita there is often less supply.

Rating (low / medium / high / very high) Percentile-based density band

Within a peer group (e.g. all 9 states or all 23 Vienna districts) the density is split into four equally sized bands. Low = bottom quarter = the mathematically largest market gap. Very high = top quarter = usually saturated.

Churn indicator Market-movement index

The sum of the absolute monthly changes (registrations and deregistrations) divided by the mean stock, in percent. High means: a lot of movement in the market, even if net nothing grows. Flat-churny is the most interesting signal for founders — saturated, but seats regularly become available.

13-month trend Net delta over roughly 1 year

A comparison of the first and last month in the stored window (currently May 2025 – today). +3% means: the stock has grown by 3% net. The sparkline shows the intermediate trajectory — short ups and downs are normal, a trend direction only emerges over many months.

Narrative hint Market classification in words

A combination of net trend and churn: growing_steady (grows calmly), growing_volatile (grows with volatility), flat_stable (unchanged, quiet), flat_churny (unchanged, lots of movement — prime signal), shrinking_steady/_volatile (shrinking).

Prime zone Top-left of the market compass

The best combination for founders — low density per capita AND high market movement. In plain terms: less competition per resident and, at the same time, a market that isn't turning crusty. Not every trade lands there; some are structurally flat_stable (e.g. butchers) or bottom-right (hospitality).

OSM (OpenStreetMap) Visible addresses

The map of visible competitors is based on OpenStreetMap (ODbL licence). A business on OSM usually has a shop premises with an address. The difference between the GISA figure and the OSM figure is an indication of mobile/home-office businesses without a storefront (e.g. mobile hairdressers).

Whitespace Mathematical market gap

A district or region where the density per 10k is clearly below the median. A signal, but not a guarantee — low density can be due to weak purchasing power or low footfall. Always read it with context (population structure, commuter flow, OSM location).

Per 10,000 vs. absolute figure Why we normalise

Favoriten has ~180 hairdresser locations, Josefstadt ~40 — in absolute numbers Favoriten looks more crowded. Calculated per 10,000 residents, Josefstadt at 16 is above Favoriten's 9. The absolute figure is misleading; the per-capita metric is the honest one.

Small-business scheme § 6 (1) 27 UStG

The Austrian rule under which businesses with under €35,000 annual turnover pay no VAT. For the Pro Report at €49 this means no VAT, no reverse-charge complication and no merchant-of-record fee from third-party providers.