20.03.2026 14:33
As of January, the most common trades in Turkey are "grocery, dealership, and kiosk" operations. It is stated that there are 2 million 256 thousand 978 tradespeople across Turkey, with the number of female tradespeople exceeding 430 thousand. Grocery stores, which have been overshadowed by supermarkets, have been viewed as "finished" for some time.
The profession with the highest number of tradespeople in Turkey as of January is "grocery, dealership, and kiosk" with 194,052 people.
As of January, a total of 2,256,978 tradespeople and artisans operating in 184 professions across the country contribute to the economy in 2,542,099 workplaces. When looking at the provinces, Istanbul was identified as the province with the highest number of tradespeople and artisans, with 283,449 people. It was followed by Izmir, Ankara, Antalya, and Bursa. The province with the least number of tradespeople was recorded as Bayburt with 2,178. Following Bayburt, the provinces with the least number of tradespeople were Ardahan, Tunceli, Iğdır, and Gümüşhane.
TAXI DRIVERS ALSO IN THE TOP RANKS
In the ranking of professions with the highest number of tradespeople, "grocery, dealership, kiosk" ranked first with 194,052 people. This profession was followed by "road freight transportation" with 189,392 tradespeople, "restaurant" with 139,825, "transportation service operation" with 97,864, and "taxi driving" with 85,506 tradespeople.
NUMBER OF FEMALE TRADESPEOPLE EXCEEDS 430 THOUSAND
Women make up 19.25% (434,573) of the tradespeople across the country, while the number of male tradespeople was determined to be 1,822,405 (80.75%). The ratio of the number of tradespeople to the total population of the country was calculated to be 2.65%.
27,929 NEW WORKPLACES OPENED IN JANUARY
In the first month of 2026, activity continued in the world of tradespeople. In January, 27,929 new workplaces were registered and opened, while 12,736 workplaces underwent cancellation (closure) procedures. In new registrations, Istanbul ranked first with 3,311 new businesses.
In terms of access to finance for tradespeople, in January, a total of 12 billion 584 million lira in loans was provided to 16,879 tradespeople through state banks and cooperatives. Tradespeople and artisans achieved an export of 32.25 million dollars in January. Among the countries to which exports were made, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) took the lead, followed by Mongolia, Romania, Saudi Arabia, and Germany. During the same period, the imports of tradespeople amounted to 41.14 million dollars.
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE IN THE SPOTLIGHT IN CAPACITY REPORT
There was also activity in the capacity reports documenting the production power of businesses in January. A total of 346 capacity reports were approved, with the food and agriculture sector leading with 140 reports. At the provincial level, the city with the most capacity reports was Bursa, with 24 reports.