Stilla: sustainable acoustic panels

2025: A Turning Point for Akoestiekfabriek

2025 was a year of expansion, optimization, and growth for Akoestiekfabriek. What started as an ambitious start-up has evolved into a strong scale-up in the circular, social, and acoustic landscape. Larger projects, more people, stronger partnerships, and a major step forward in professionalization marked the year. It was a period in which Akoestiekfabriek managed to stay true to its values while further scaling its operations, quality, and impact. In 2026, the company will continue on the same path, though soon under a new name.

Strong Financial Performance

Financially, 2025 was an exceptionally strong year for Akoestiekfabriek. Annual revenue increased by around 52%. The strongest acceleration occurred in the second half of the year, with results significantly exceeding initial expectations. This growth was largely driven by several large and complex projects that came in throughout the year, projects that were far from guaranteed at the start of 2025.

A key example is the project with GO! Scholengroep Brussels, where offices and school buildings were acoustically upgraded. Akoestiekfabriek also made significant progress in its collaboration with Van Duysen, thanks to the complexity of the project, where acoustic panels had to meet highly specific and unconventional requirements.

Where Akoestiekfabriek previously approached large-scale assignments with caution, this year it increasingly said “yes” with confidence. Thanks to better-aligned processes, a strong team, and growing self-confidence, larger projects were successfully delivered, always with a focus on maintaining quality and reliability.

Jobcreation and talent development

Creating high-quality jobs remained a core pillar of Akoestiekfabriek in 2025. This is built on three principles: meaningful roles with growth opportunities, fair wages, and stable contracts. In 2025, the team not only doubled in size, but there was also a strong focus on developing existing employees. Director Eva De Smedt calls it “healthy ambition.”

Employees who had been with the company longer were given additional responsibilities and the opportunity to further develop their talents. With the right support, Akoestiekfabriek aims to unlock existing potential and encourage its people to continuously push their own boundaries. Growth here means not only doing more, but enabling people to grow with the right support and a healthy level of ambition.

Expanding clients and partnerships

Akoestiekfabriek also made major strides in expanding its client base and partnerships in 2025. Schools remained a loyal and important partner, while new collaborations continued to grow. Social enterprises and manufacturing companies increasingly found their way to Akoestiekfabriek, as did architects and finishing companies.

Through targeted prospecting, several new clients were acquired and larger projects were realized, such as the impressive project at Sobo, where an entire production hall was equipped with acoustic panels. These ambitious collaborations are the result of accumulated experience, but also of the team’s flexibility and readiness. Positive client feedback on quality further strengthened confidence in the company’s growth potential and laid the groundwork for even larger partnerships.

From start-up to established company

In many ways, 2025 felt like a transition year, from a young start-up to a fully-fledged, professional organization. Behind the scenes, Akoestiekfabriek invested heavily in optimizing production and installation processes. The sales process was also further refined.

This professionalization ensures that the company is now well prepared for continued growth. At the same time, growth brings new challenges, such as the need for a larger location. What remains certain is that Akoestiekfabriek will continue to be rooted in Brussels.

Looking ahead to 2026

Looking ahead to 2026, Akoestiekfabriek is confident about the future. The challenge will be to sustain the strong growth achieved in 2025 while continuing to invest in quality, people, and impact. The ambition remains to focus on meaningful projects, sustainable partnerships, and the creation of quality jobs.

A significant change is also on the horizon: in 2026, Akoestiekfabriek will introduce a new name. This rebranding does not mark a break with the past, but rather a logical next step. The current name no longer fully reflects what the company has become: a more mature, multilingual, and broadly oriented organization, active across different sectors and at a larger scale. With a new name and identity, Akoestiekfabriek aims to better align with its values, its social and circular mission, and its ambition to grow further—without losing its unique character.

More details will follow soon. What remains unchanged is the belief that quality, sustainability, and people come first, today and in the years ahead.