eCommerce Poland 2013 Report - Facts and Figures for Investors

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eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

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Executive Summary Report

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Introduction
Poland is one of the fastest growing
eCommerce markets in Europe, quoting approximately 25% growth yearon-year. The estimated eCommerce
B2C value of goods trade, not including
services, in 2013 was more than 6 bn
euro. If the current growth rate maintains, the figure is predicted to rise in
two years to nearly 11 bn euro.
According to the Eurostat reports, the
eCommerce share in the entire Polish
consumer trade is about 4%. Although
it is less than in some other European
countries, the observed market and
economic trends are comparable to
mature markets, such as British or German. At the same time, over 30% of the
38 million population of Poland declare
to shop online. This rate is higher than
for Spain or Italy.
Thanks to growing access to broadband Internet, the total number of
e-consumers increases every year. According to the study of the Concise
Statistical Yearbook of Poland in 2013,
70% of Polish households had Internet access. The number of credit card
holders also increases and online payments successfully ousted the cash-ondelivery methods. Meanwhile, there is a
gap in the Polish market to be fulfilled
by the courier companies, for which the
coming years are also predicted to generate double-figure increases.
At present, there are over 12 thousand
online shops in Poland. The market
continuously matures, as evidenced by
the decreasing growth rate of e-shops.
However, within many industries, we
cannot conclude that the market is saturated. This fact is clearly visible in the
food sector, which in recent years has
been developing most rapidly. Since
2007, the number of online stores in this
sector has been growing by approximately 35% each year. It is estimated

that in two years, the e-FMCG will reach
the value of more than 107 mln euro.
This represents twice the level of current figures. These trends seem to have
caught the attention of western giants,
such as Tesco, Auchan or Leclerc, which
have already enabled Poles to buy their
products online.
The potential of the Polish market has
also been recognized by the popular
shops of other sectors, such as West
Wing or Conrad as well as leaders of
the clothing industry - Otto or Zalando. Another example of the successful
business expansion to the Polish eCommerce market are companies providing
services for online shops, such as Trusted Shops or Sofort Banking. Recently,
Amazon, the biggest online shop in the
world, has decided to build its logistic
centres in Poland.
Apart from the huge potential gains
emerging from the growing popularity
of online shopping in Poland, there are
many other important factors influencing overseas investors. They point to
good office and communication infrastructure as well as to visible potential
of the labor market and access to multilingual specialists. Despite the global
crisis, the economic situation in Poland
has been assessed as stable, while localization of the country opens the way
for further expansion to the Eastern European markets and Russia.

will shed light on lucrative business opportunities and help you to asses your
organizations potential for entering
this market.

Piotr Jarosz, CEO of Dotcom River
Executive Editor
of the eCommerce Poland 2013 Report

I am convinced that all of the above
mentioned factors create an ideal space
for investment activities and encourage forward thinking companies to
enter into the game right now because
the biggest and brightest opportunities for prosperity in the Polish eCommerce market are just ahead of us. This
report is an executive summary of our
multi-year study and presents the key
aspects of Polish eCommerce. I hope it

Partners

3.

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POLAND 2013
Key Data at a Glance

8%
8%
8%
SWEDEN
9,1%
9,1%

European customers
shopping online

NORWEY

> 50%
30 - 50%
13,2%
13,2%
13,2%
UK

< 30%

10%

%

3,8%
3,8%
3,8%
POLAND

GERMANY

Online share
of total retail trade
8,7%
8,7%
8,7%
FRANCE

6,2%
4,1%

ITALY

SPAIN

Online shops

Total e-retail
value 6 bn

12 000 +

Population

100
100

38,5 mln

100%

Internet users

68%

26,2 mln

48%

80
80
60
60
40
40

25%
20
20

Online shoppers

12,6 mln

and analysis
Research

54%

0
0

social media smartphone
users
users

See full report on:
Sources:
Eurostat, European Commission, http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu;

PMR Research, http://research-pmr.com;

Centre of Retail Research, http://retailresearch.org;

Polish Ministry of Treasury, http://msp.gov.pl

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Contents.............................................................................................................................................5
1. Polish eCustomer......................................................................................................................6
Investor’s voice - Trusted Shops.................................................................................................9
2. Market size and structure.................................................................................................... 11
3. Online shops marketing and advertising...................................................................... 16
4. Transactions and payments................................................................................................ 22
Investor’s voice - SOFORT AG................................................................................................... 26
5. Inventory management and logistics............................................................................. 28
6. Shopping cart software....................................................................................................... 29
About the Editor........................................................................................................................... 32
Sources............................................................................................................................................. 32

Partners

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POLAND 2013

1. Polish eCustomer
There are 38,5 mln people in Poland.
In terms of population it places the
country on the 6th position within the
European Union. Among individuals
ranging from 16-74 years old, as many
as 62% are Internet users and nearly
half of them (48%) surf the web in order to find information about products
and services, while 21% shop online.
According to the data published by the
Concise Statistical Yearbook of Poland
in 2013, about 70% of Polish households are equipped with computers
and Internet access.

year. Less than 4% of eConsumers did
not buy anything via Internet in 2010.
About 9% of Internet users buy very
rarely - once a year.
Salaries of Polish internet users directly
correlate with the respective frequency
of online shopping. More than 38% of
Internet shoppers, earning over EUR

1,185 (PLN 5,000 ) buy online at least
a few times per month. Meanwhile,
among those who earn less than EUR
474 (PLN 2,000), one in every 4 shoppers keep pace at the same frequency.

Experience in online
shopping

Frequency of online
shopping

Figure 1.1.

Figure 1.2.

1.1. eCustomers experience

3,9%
15,6%

8,7%

18,6%

Online shopping in Poland is very common. Less than 16% of Internet users we surveyed declared not having
bought on the web at all.

30,0%

27,6%

38,2%

57,4%

Most Polish eConsumers
have more than 3 years of
shopping experience.

Online consumers with the most extensive shopping experience belong to the
highest populated age group of 31-50
years old. Older Internet users, who are
over 65, represent the smallest group of
online consumers, where 41% of them
still have not purchased anything from
the web. These encouraging statistics
show that one in every 5 users over the
age of 65 made an online purchase at
least once during the last year.

1.2. Online shopping frequency

less than 1 year
1 - 3 years
more than 3 years
never

Figure 1.3.

one time during the last year
have not done shopping online this year yet

Experience in online shopping in different age groups
[%] 0

less than 18 yrs

20

40

17,9

31-50 yrs

17,7
17,6

15,4

28,0

51-65 yrs

60

25,1

29,6

18-30 yrs

27,3

more than 65 yrs

Almost every third Pole buys on the
Internet several times a month, and
more than half of them - a few times a

on average, at least a few times per month
in total, a few times during the year

20,2

30,0

11,8

80

100

29,9

37,8

14,2

42,8

11,5

39,5
27,2

15,6
40,8

less than 1 year
1 - 3 years
more than 3 years
never

Partners

6.

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Figure 1.4.

Frequency of online shopping with respect to the respondents monthly income
[%] 0

less than 2.000 PLN (475 EUR)
2.000-5.000 PLN (475 - 1187 EUR)
more than 5.000 PLN (1187 EUR)

20

40

60

25,2

80

100

59,9

31,7

9,9 5,0

58,8

38,2

7,1

45,2

10,7 5,8

on average, at least a few times per month
in total, a few times during the year
one time during the last year
have not done shopping online this year yet

Figure 1.5.

Motivations for buying online with regard to the gender of respondents

[%] 0

10

20

30

40

it’s convenient and saves time

44,7

I tend to buy impulsively, if there is something I like

8,9

60

50,3

11,7
32,9
35,5

I like to compare many products before I make a purchase

18,3
17,0

it’s the only way to access products that I need

45,3
43,7

prices are more attractive than in traditional stores
other reasons

50

2,9
3,1
woman

man

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7.

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Figure 1.6.

Arguments that could persuade Polish e-consumers of different age groups to buy online more often

[%] 0

10

20

30

40

50

60

50,9
lower prices

44,7

31,8

22,1
14,8
18,2

quicker delivery time

10,6

18,4

57,9

30,7
33,1

22,4
money-back guarantee provided by a trusted institution

51,2

70

25,2

32,9

36,8

wider selections available through online shops

26,5
14,1
16,9
16,1
18,2
18,2

simplified procedures of online shopping

14,4
15,5
12,7
10,0

greater certainty about the security of my personal data

*other

less than 18

21,1

13,4
11,8
11,2
12,7
15,3

gaining a greater understanding of the online experience and process

more frequent/ better Internet access

42,3
38,4
35,1

12,3
10,2
7,8
8,2
9,4
4,0
3,8
3,5
4,0
6,5
18-30

31-50

51-65

more than 65

[yrs old]

*The most prevalent concerns voiced by respondents were: lower delivery costs or a lack of delivery fee, wider product range,
a need for more specific information about products and an easier way of finding a desired product.

Partners

8.

Investor’s voice
Trusted Shops about the Polish branch

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

TRUSTED SHOPS IN POLAND - ENTERED
THE MARKET AT THE RIGHT TIME
We talked with Anna Rak, the Country Manager of Trusted Shops
in Poland, about the entry of the German established company
into the Polish market in 2010.

Why did Trusted Shops decide to enter the Polish eCommerce market?

market?

With a population of over 38 mln and
as many as 18 mln internet users, Poland is an attractive market with huge
potential still to be unlocked. In fact,
in recent years Poland has had one of
the highest growth rates in the eCommerce sector among all EU countries.
At the same time Poles demonstrate
a very low level of trust, which makes
them reluctant to do online shopping.
We identified this challenge and have
decided to address it by equipping
shop owners with solutions that help
to build consumer trust.

What struck us most when we launched
in Poland was finding out how low the
level of trust was. While signing contracts with us, Polish online retailers
would engage their lawyers and carefully analyse every single page looking
for fine print. This accurately illustrates
the typical attitude towards people or
business partners that Poles cooperate with for the first time. However, it’s
interesting to work with people who
combine passion and diligence at the
same time. Likewise, the eCommerce
sector in Poland is still young and dynamic and it keeps surprising us even
today.

What were the main obstacles you
had to face while entering the Polish
market and how long did the preparation take?

What, in your opinion, is the key to
success on the Polish market?

At the initial stage, the biggest hurdle
was to compile a knowledge base that
would enable us to specify Polish criteria for the audit – our core product. The
Trusted Shops quality criteria are based
on national and European laws that are
important for making purchases on the
Internet. Our experts had to make sure
they comply with Polish regulations.
It took us almost one year to establish
our operations in Poland, as we wanted
to ensure the highest quality of service.
We also prepared the ground for cooperation with organisations and associations in the Polish eCommerce sector.
What was the biggest surprise after
launching your services in Poland,
comparing to the native German

Our experience shows that an in-depth
understanding of the Polish market is
essential for foreign companies that
plan to extend their operations to Poland. As a new player on the market
you need to identify your target customers and challenges they face. This
requires communication since it’s important for both parties to speak the
same language. Establishing a good
rapport with customers is key to providing excellent service and helps turn
them into brand evangelists. We should
not underestimate the word-of-mouth,
especially in some industries.
With hindsight, was it a good decision to enter the Polish market and
was the decision made at the right
time?

Founded in 1999, the Cologne based
company is Europe’s market leader for
the accreditation of online shops.
Since the company was founded, over
17 000 retailers have been accredited.
At present, Trusted Shops has operated,
inter alia, in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Great
Britain and in Poland since 2010.

We believe that we launched our services in Poland just in time to gain
momentum before the eCommerce
boom started. We have been growing
together with the online market. As
the Polish eCommerce sector has yet
to become fully mature, we observe a
great demand for our comprehensive
services that help retailers thrive in this
favourable climate. One of our challenges now is to catch up with this dynamic growth.
Many investors, who enter the Polish
market, indicate the strategic location of Poland in Europe as one of the
main reasons behind their decision.
Was the Trusted Shops’ investment
into the Polish branch also a case of
taking the first step towards the further expansion into the Eastern European markets?
We are continuing expansion into Europe so that more retailers and customers can enjoy the benefits of safe
and secure online shopping. This summer we launched Trusted Shops trustmark in the Netherlands, Belgium and
Italy. Poland will serve as a hub when
we further expand in the Eastern European region but more details will be
announced at a later time.

Partners

9.

Boost your
online sales
in Poland and the EU with the
Trusted Shops buyer protection!
Our independent money-back guarantee helps:
buy
ü convince customers to storehighly-priced products online
instead of treating the
as a mere catalogue
size by encouraging
ü increase basketinstead of playing safecustomers orders
to spend more
with small
ü prevent shopping-cart abandonment
Find out more at

www.trustedshops.com

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POLAND 2013

2. Market size and structure
2013 was a period of continuation in
dynamic growth for Polish eCommerce
turnover. Its value is estimated to be
about EUR 6,2 bn, which is 21% more
than in the previous year (EUR 5,1 bn).
In 2012, the growth rate was also double-digits and was up 23% year after
year. The scale of growth is made readily evident by referencing the value of
Polish eCommerce just 10 years ago,
when it amounted to EUR 78,6 mln, i. e.
only 1,3% of the current value.
The fast pace of growth in the Polish
online market is consistent with global
trends within this sector. According to
estimates of eMarketer, B2C Internet
sales increased by 21,1% in 2012, exceeding the value of USD 1 trillion for
the first time in history. Meanwhile, the
growth potential of the Asian-Pacific
region is projected to propel it into becoming the world’s leading B2C online
sales market, surpassing even North
America.

Figure 2.1.

[quantity] 0
2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2.1. Number and age of online

shops

Polish eCommerce is constantly growing, although the growth rate has
slowed down in the last years indicating that the process of market maturation has begun. Back in 2009, every
other Polish online store had been operating for less than two years, while
in 2012 the beginner shops represent
slightly more than a quarter of the total
number (29.2%).

The largest increase in
the number of new online
stores in Poland in recent
years was reported in the
food industry.
The largest decrease in the growth rate
among web shops affected the electronics industry and book stores (9%),
while the delicatessen (17%) and cloth-

Number of online stores in 2006-2012

2000

4000

6000

ing (14%) are leaders of the relative
increases. This is not surprising in the
case of grocery stores. Given the structure of Polish consumer spending, market for these products has the greatest
potential and the competition in this
industry is relatively low.

2.2. Employment and market

area

Almost half of all shops in Poland is
staffed by one person (24.5%) or two
people (22.2%), while companies employing more than 50 people represent a narrow margin of retailers (3.3%).
Among online shops that have operated less than a year, only 32,5% of
firms sell offline, while in the group of
retailers having operated more than 10
years, 64,5% possess a land-based store.

85% of Polish online shops
are micro-enterprises.

Figure 2.2.

8000

10000

12000

Age of online stores

14000

5,1% 12,7%

2 762
23,2%

4 230

16,5%

5 841
7 576

24,2%

18,3%

9 289
10 814
12 117

less than 1 year
1 - 2 years
2 - 3 years
3 - 5 years
5 - 10 years
more than 10 years

Partners

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Figure 2.3.

Number of shops in different retail sectors
[quantity] 0

500

Does your company also
sell offline?

Figure 2.4.

1000

1500

2000

643

Automotive

331

Delicatessen

2 491

House and Garden

984

Goods for Children

46,0%

932

Photo and RTV-AGD

54,0%

602

Hobby

977

Computer

566

Books and Multimedia

1 278

Clothing

1 312

Presents and Accessories

yes

1 145

Health and Beauty

Number of employees in companies running online shops
[%] 0

5

10

15

20

25

30

24,5

one person

22,2

2 people

26,7

3-5 people

11,5

6-10 people

7,4

11-20 people

4,3

21-50 people

3,3

over 50 people

Figure 2.6.

no

856

Sport and Tourism

Figure 2.5.

2500

Having a brick and mortar shop, depending on the business age
[%] 0

20

40

32,5

less than 1 year

64,5

more than 10 years
yes

100

60,7

52,4

3 - 10 years

80

67,5

39,3

1 -3 years

60

47,6
35,5

no

Partners

12.

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POLAND 2013

would reach for clients from the rest of
the European countries.

2.3. Polish cross-border

eCommerce

Only every third of Polish
shops sells products in
other EU countries.
Almost all Polish online stores (99,8%)
operate within the national market.
Every third Polish seller we surveyed
(33,1%) is willing to accept orders from
countries belonging to the European
Union, while only every tenth (9,6%)
Figure 2.7.

This is due to the fact that unfortunately, many companies are not able to
overcome the major barriers of crossborder e-commerce, which are mainly
time and cost of international transport. In addition to logistics, the other
obstacles are language differences, different currencies, taxes, additional demands of search engine optimization
and marketing, and last but not least,
the challenge of gaining the trust of the
foreign client.

2.4. Average basket value and

gross margin

The average basket value in Poland is
EUR 62 (PLN 260). Average basket values are reflected in the shop’s total income, however, the profitability of the
shops depends heavily on the trade
margins that they negotiate.
Business sectors that reach the highest trade margins in Poland are gifts
and accessories (26%) and clothing
(25,8%), while the toughest competi-

Sales coverage of Polish online stores in EU and other countries
[%] 0

25

50

75

100

99,8

in Poland

33,1

European Union countries

9,6

European countries from outside of the EU
other countries

Figure 2.8.

6,8

Average basket value of Polish e-stores
[%] 0

less than 5 EUR

5

10

15

20

8,6
24,2

12 - 24 EUR

16,5

24 - 36 EUR

13,7

36 - 48 EUR

13,5

48 - 71 EUR

8,7

71 - 119 EUR

5,9

119 - 238 EUR

4,1

238 - 478 EUR

hard to say

30

0,5

5 - 12 EUR

more than 478 EUR

25

1,6
2,6

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13.

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tion and the lowest margins are associated with computer shops (10,2%) and
stores offering photography products
and household appliances (13,5%). Obviously, we have to keep in mind that
these are the average market values
and many shops that offer niche products, thereby avoiding competition,
achieve significantly higher profitability.

Figure 2.9.

Margin trading of e-stores, depending on their product range
[%] 0

10

20

30


26,0

Clothing

25,8
23,2

Delicatessen

22,5

Sport and Tourism

Average gross margin
of Polish online stores is
21.7%.

22,2

Health and Beuty

21,4

House and Garden

20,0

Hobby

19,7

Goods for Children

2.5. The size and profitability of
sales

17,8


16,8

Automotive

13,5

Photo and RTV-AGD

Almost two-thirds of Polish retailers reported an increase in sales. Compared
to 2010, our survey shows an increase
in the number of stores with a turnover
greater than EUR 11,850 (PLN 50,000)
and over EUR 47,401 (PLN 200,000).
However, these are relatively minor
changes, indicating the structural stabilization of the Polish Market. The
turnover of online stores has a direct
correlation with the profitability of the
businesses directly impacting margins
for their respective owners. The absolute majority of the surveyed retailers
(66.2%) achieved gains, while losses
were recorded by 14.5% of respondents.

At least 2/3 of online shops
in Poland are profitable.
As might be expected, mature stores
(83.3%) make a profit more often than
the small and beginner shops (49.1%),
of which nearly one-third (29.1%) are
not able to determine whether they
will make a profit or a loss.

10,2

Computer

Figure 2.10. How the sales figures will
change this year compared to the
previous one

15,3%

12,4%

Market share of shops having various sales figures

Figure 2.11.

15,7%

13,3%

40,7%

43,6%

59,0%

decrease
invariable
increase
hard to say

up to 2 385 EUR
2 385 - 23 833 EUR
more than 23 833 EUR

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Figure 2.12.

itable?

Are online retail sales prof-

Figure 2.13. The probability of profits depending on age, number of employees and
sales volume

[%] 0

10

20

30

40

14,5%

hard to say

70

80

90

83,3
21,8

we do not achieve profits

66,2%

60

49,1

yes, we achieve profits

19,3%

50

11,1
29,1
5,6
shops up to 3 years old, employing up to 2 people
with a monthly sales value up to 11 917 EUR (50 000 PLN)
shops more than 3 years old, employing more than 2 people,
with a montly sales value over 11 917 EUR (50 000 PLN)

hard to say
no, we do not achieve profits

Table 2.1.

The biggest European and Polish eStores, eCommerce turnover in million Euros

Rank in
Europe

Company Name

eCommerce Turnover 2012

Country of origin

Main Sector

% eCommerce

[Europe only, Mio Euros]

1

Amazon

16.710

USA

All sectors except food

100%

2

Otto

5.700

Germany

Fashion

48%

6

Tesco

2.466

UK

Food / all sectors

4%

Carrefour

1.500

France

Food / all sectors

3%

16

Zalando

1.150

Germany

Footwear, leather and fashion

100%

24

Dell Inc.

810

USA

Consumer electronics

n/a

25

Mark & Spencer

804

UK

Fashion

6%

43

Conrad

500

Germany

Consumer electronics

63%

50

H & M Henner & Mauritz AB

450

Sweden

Fashion

2%

55

Ozon

383

Russia

Books, Music, electronics

100%

57

Tchibo GmbH

360

Germany


n/a

72

C and A

270

Luxembourg

Fashion

4%

87

DocMorris N.V.

178

Netherlands

Medicines

n/a

88

Redcoon GmbH

175

Germany


n/a

Adidas

158

UK


9%

Walbusch Walter Busch GmbH
& Co. KG

144

Germany


n/a

10

94
100

Rank in
Poland

Company Name

eCommerce Turnover 2011

Country of origin

Main Sector

% eCommerce

[Europe only, Mio Euros]

1

NEO24.PL sp. z o o.

57

Poland

2

Oponeo.pl S.A.

40

Poland

Automotive

n/a

3

Komputronik S.A.

35

Poland

Computers and Electronics

n/a

4

Merlin.pl S.A.

35

Poland

Books, Music, Games

n/a

5

Empik Digital & Publishing

34

Poland

Music, Games, eBooks

n/a

Photo

n/a

used exchange rate: 1EUR=4,24 PLN; Source: iBusiness.de
Partners

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3. Online shops marketing and advertising
Importance of service customisation
grows in Polish eCommerce, focused
on winning niche by delivering services
of the highest possible quality, accompanied by wide product assortment.
According to our research, established
web stores have well-diversified marketing channels and use them efficiently. Sales value is strongly dependent on
the intensity of marketing activities.
The degree to which higher turnover is
achieved by a shop is directly reflected
in the intensity by which its products
are advertised across marketing channels.

most popular forms of advertising of
eCommerce websites, are presence in
online catalogs of shops (over 74% of
our interviewees) and Search Engine
Marketing (more than 71%). The next
quite common marketing method is
promotion on social networking sites
(62% of stores declared as having ran
profiles in social media) as well as having featured products on price comparison websites and auction platforms
(56 and 52% respectively).

Only slightly more than 1%
of online stores do not use
any form of eMarketing.

3.1. How do online shops

advertise?

According to our research, the two
Figure 3.1.

It turns out that price comparison websites are almost twice as likely to be
used by stores with revenue of over

Featuring in online
directories and SEO are the
most popular marketing
forms.
EUR 23,700 (PLN 100,000) than by the
ones with a turnover of less than EUR
2,370 (PLN 10,000). It is similar in the
case of SEM (Search Engine Marketing),
whereas daily deals websites and e-mail
marketing are three times more likely to
be used by the sales leaders. Interestingly enough, the biggest difference
concerns affiliate marketing. It is used
as much as six times more frequentlyamong well-prospering players (16%)
than the new ones (only 3%). The only
things that the “newbies” do more than
the mature vendors are buzz marketing
and promotion in online directories.

Marketing activities of online stores
[%] 0

25

50

75

74,3

listing in online catalogs of shops

71,2

SEO

62,8

social media profile

56,3

listing on price comparison websites

52,7

selling through web auction platforms

42,8

SEM

40,4

e-mail marketing

31,6

buzz marketing

26,0

advert on thematic websites

14,2

own affiliation program

11,7

promotion on daily deals websites

9,4

affiliate ads networks
other
we do not perform marketing activities

100

3,6
1,3

Partners

16.

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”

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

Figure 3.2.

Forms of marketing used by shops with respect to their sales value
[%] 0

25

50

75

100

44,3
59,5


82,4
28,1
42,5

e-mail marketing

69,2
60,9
63,5
67,0


32,3
44,4

SEM

65,9
8,1
10,7

promotion on daily deal websites

26,4
3,8

8,7
23,1
monthly turnover up to 10 000 PLN (2 370 EUR)
10 000 - 100 000 PLN (2 370 - 23 700 EUR)
more than 100 000 PLN (23 700 EUR)

Figure 3.3.

Profitability of online sales, by the use of marketing
[%] 0

20

use marketing activities
do not use marketing activities

40

60

66,6
37,5

19,2
25,0

hard to say

80

100

14,2

37,5

we do not achieve proﬁts

Partners

18.

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

Figure 3.4.

Forms of marketing used by online shops with respect to their age, employees number and sales volume

[%] 0

10

20

30

40

50

90

45,5
76,9
22,4

e-mail marketing

66,7
78,2

listing in online shops catalogs

65,7
65,5
63,9


47,3

selling through web auction platforms

62,0
30,3

SEM

61,1
24,2

advert on thematic website

34,3
34,5
29,6

buzz marketing

6,7

promotion on daily deals websites

22,2
10,9

own aﬃliation program

we do not perform marketing activities

80

79,6


other

70

65,5

SEO


60

17,6
3,6
16,7
4,2
1,9
1,2
0,0
shops up to 3 years old, employing up to 2 people with a monthly
turnover up to 50 000PLN (11 820 EUR)
shops over 3 years old, employing more than 2 people with a monthly
turnover over 50 000 PLN (11 820 EUR)

Partners

19.

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

Among stores that claim not to perform
any kind of marketing activities, only
37% said their stores were profitable.
The rest of the shops report losses, or
their owners do not know if the stores
are profitable (25% of cases).

3.2. Social Media marketing

Figure 3.5.

Social networking sites popular among online shops
[%] 0

25

62,5

Twitter

8,1

NK (Nasza-Klasa)

7,6
3,4

Blip

2,9

Google+

2,6

3.3. Daily deals websites
Nearly 12% of online shops declared
promoting their products on daily
deals websites. This form of advertising
is mostly used by the clothing industry.
Figure 3.6.

Grono.net

1,3

Flaker

Polish owners of online shops say that
social media does not sell. Only 10%
of our responders said direct sale was
the main purpose of their social media
activity and they represent mostly the
smallest firms. The biggest shops, much
more often use social networking sites
to share information about new offers,
competitions or to interact with clients
and get to know their opinions.

75

Facebook

Goldenline

Most of the Polish online
shops use social media to
share the news.

50

1,1

Fotka 0,0
other

0,8
37,2

no account

Shops offering books, computers or
hobby accessories advertise this way
very rarely.
Among retailers, who cooperate with
daily deals website, 46% choose Groupon. The second most favored daily
deals portals are Allegro Citeam.pl (chosen by 31% of online shops) and Gruper
(listed by 24% of answerers).

They are also one of the first choices
when it comes to eCommerce marketing strategy, regardless of the store age.
Given the popularity of various comparison sites, Ceneo.pl is leading the
Polish market (cooperating with 37.7%
of our responders), Nokoaut.pl ranks
second (35.9%), followed by Okazje.info
(29.8%).

Price comparison websites are a source
of customers for 56% of online stores.

Main goals of social media marketing for online shops
[%] 0

25

50

75

87,9

information about new products

62,7

news and company announcements

57,0

special promotions / contests for followers

55,4

constant contact with clients and knowing their opinion

10,2

direct sale through the social account’s proﬁle
other

100

2,6

Partners

20.

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

Figure 3.7.

Popular daily deals websites

[%] 0

5

10

5,4

Grupon

MyDeal

1,3

Okazik

1,3

FastDeal

1,2

Frupi

64,5
62,9
62,8
61,3
57,3
56,1

Hause and Garden

54,4

Clothing

1,5

Other

75,9

Goods for Children

0,2

100

82,1

Automotive

0,2

DealLx

75


0,5

Ofeteria

50

Sport and Tourism

0,7

Happyday

25

Health and Beauty

1,3

Cuppon

[%] 0

Photo and RTV-AGD

2,8

Gruper

Usage of price comparison sites in e-retail sectors

Computer

3,6

Citeam

Figure 3.8.

53,9

Hobby
Delicatessen
immaterial products
other

50,0
48,1
44,4
47,3

Price comparison websites
popular among online shops

Figure 3.9.

[%] 0

25

50

37,7

Ceneo.pl

35,9

Nokaut.pl

29,8

Okazje.info

26,7

Skapiec.pl

17,6

Radar.pl

10,7

Kupujemy.pl
Smartbay.pl

8,1

Twenga.pl

7,9

Bazarcen.pl

3,4

Torturacen.pl

2,3

Other
Do not use
comparison sites

5,0
43,7

Partners

21.

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

4. Transactions and payments
The recent results of our study showed
that, for the first time in years, the Polish
payment market of online trading has
begun to follow European trends. The
visible success of online transfers suggests that currently our market is evolving in the direction of the Dutch model,
in which solutions like Pay-By-Link (PBL)
are commonly used. At the same time,
67.6% of online transfers are operated
by payment service providers, reflecting the large success of these entities
on the Polish market.
It should be noted at this point that a
separate trend in the field of Internet
payments may soon become the solution based on mobile payments, with
the use of smartphones. Especially,
if they are integrated with sale and
distribution of products through applications installed on these devices.
Observation of unusual development
dynamics of mobile solutions in different usage areas in Poland suggests that
in the coming years they will likely be
able to challenge other services of online payment.
Are you satisfied with payment methods available in Poland?

Figure 4.1.

3.4. Popular payment methods
The current trend for accepted payment methods in Poland indicates the
dominant coverage of COD payments
and bank transfers. Noteworthy in recent years is a significant expansion of
the scope of the acceptance of a few
important methods: payment service
providers from 46.29% to 78.42%, online transfers from 51.19% to 63.59%
and payment cards from 54,97% to almost 60%. The popularity of virtual payment services is gradually growing and
amounts to about 20% at present.

3.5. Cross-border sales and

evolution of online payments

A significant increase in availability of
credit card payment in Polish online
stores is related to the fact that they
are the most important instrument of
payment in foreign markets. In the UK,
where the market trends are a comFigure 4.2.

2012

[%] 0

16,8%

2010

13,3%

2012

69,9%

yes

hard to say

mon indicator of changes expected
in Poland, 40% of online transactions
are carried out using a credit card, and
35% - a debit card. In Poland, the cards
are usually widely accepted for crossborder payments, but currently operating e-transfers, in principle, allow for
payments exclusively with Polish online
stores. This is due to various organizational reasons and because they use
national bank transfers.

Percentage of sales served by the certain payment method in 2010 and

20

35,4

38,6
bank transfer
cash on delivery

40

60

37,9

29,3
online transfer
payment upon pickup

80

100

4,9 7,8 5,5 6,2

11,5

6,7 6,6 4,8

payment card
e-payment integrator

other

no

Partners

22.

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

Figure 4.3.

Payment methods accepted by online stores in Poland in 2010 and 2012
[%] 0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

94,8
95,6

bank transfer

92,4
90,0

cash on delivery

46,3


78,4
69,9
68,9

payment upon pickup

51,2

quick online transfer

63,6

55,0
60,0

payment card
virtual payment service

18,5
19,9

installment credit / loan

17,8
18,9

such as PayPal

bill payment network

3,4
1,8

mobile payment

1,3
0,7

online payment coupons

1,5
0,7

Premium SMS/MMS payment

0,7
0,0

other

2,4
1,6
2010

2012

Partners

23.

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

Payment methods accepted by online stores in Poland, with respect to
their attitude towards international trade

Figure 4.4.

[%] 0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

96,6
95,0

bank transfer

88,3
90,8

cash on delivery

72,2
67,2

payment upon pickup

63,9
63,4


69,8

payment card

55,0
22,9
16,9

installment credit / loan

33,2


13,2

such as PayPal


100

2,9
1,2

mobile payment

1,0
0,5


1,5
0,2

other

0,0
0,0
2,9
1,0
sale in Poland and abroad

only in Poland

Partners

24.

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

Payment methods accepted by online stores that receive over 500 and
less than 50 orders per month

Figure 4.5.

[%] 0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

95,5
93,0

bank transfer

85,3
99,0

cash on delivery

67,7


62,1

payment upon pickup

50,0


88,0
77,0

74,0

41,9

payment card

18,2

instalment credit / loan

16,2

such as PayPal


0,0
1,0


26,0

0,5
1,0

mobile payment

29,0

1,5
1,0


81,0

0,0
0,0

Other

1,5
1,0
less than 50 orders

Figure 4.6.

over 500 orders

Factors influencing the shop owners’ decisions on the provision of certain payment methods
[%] 0

20

40

35,8

36,6

complexity of the service

36,3

34,0

easy integration with IT system

15,7
9,7

38,4
28,9

16,3

8,6 4,2

34,3

42,1

the waiting time for payment

5,1 3,2

31,9

50,0

popularity among clients

17,8

100

27,1

53,8

the risk of not getting paid

settlement in other currencies

80

63,0

costs of transaction service

fact that competitors have it

60

27,1
27,6

10,1 3,6

very important
important
neither important nor unimportant
of little importance
unimportant

12,8 7,2
16,4

8,3

15,2 7,6 4,8
14,6

13,7

28,5

Partners

25.

Investor’s voice
SOFORT AG about the Polish branch

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

SOFORT AG IN POLAND - ANOTHER STEP
TOWARDS EUROPEAN EXPANSION
We talked with Dagmara Kruszewska, the Country Manager of SOFORT AG in Poland, about the entry of the German
payment company into the Polish market in 2012.
Why did SOFORT AG decide to enter the Polish
eCommerce market?
E-commerce is booming in Europe and the
trend is only going one way: upwards. Very good
news for all market participants in general, but
there are some areas in the European Internet
and e-commerce landscape which in the past
have been identified by the SOFORT AG, a European company, as less positive. These are first
of all, the lack of cross border transactions taking
place in Europe via the Internet and secondly
the domination of American business models and corporation’s such as Amazon, Google,
EBAY, Facebook etc. in the e-commerce business. Despite the power of these companies, we
believe that there is still a chance for European
companies to defy the dominance of American
companies in the online payment services sector. Therefore, SOFORT AG follows the strategy of
establishing a successful pan-European e-commerce payment service as soon as possible. Due
to this fact we want to ensure that all Europeans
have access to SOFORT Banking and are able to
easily pay for their purchases – nationally and internationally – with direct bank transfers based
on the online banking structures.
Logically, the expansion plan of SOFORT Banking Poland was one of the highest priorities due to the size of the market with the highest
growth rates in Europe, a high internet penetration and the popularity of online banking. In addition, we have had a lot of requests by existing
business partners and customers to offer a solution for cross border transactions to and from
Poland. Following this strategy, SOFORT Banking
is expanding continuously and is currently available in 11 countries. By the end of 2014 we want
to have added two more countries.
What were the main obstacles you had to face
while entering the Polish market and how
long did the preparation take?

Beside the development of the technical solution for the Polish market, the challenge was the
localization of our service in all areas. We have
had to adapt our website, payment pages, administration area, user and merchant communication and ensure a high usability factor for the
user’s journey. Of course, this is an ongoing process. In February 2014 we will have a re-launch
of our Polish website with a brand new look.
What was the biggest surprise after launching
your services in Poland, comparing to the native German market?
Right from the start we were very impressed by
the high conversion rate of SOFORT Banking
in the checkout process. We believe we have
done a good job, but additionally the high acceptance and commonness of online banking
in Poland was definitely a significant factor for
the positive results and this was a big difference
to some other markets such as e.g. in South Europe.
What, in your opinion, is the key to success on
the Polish market?
We will keep working at ongoing improvements
e.g. in areas like localization, product and usability improvements and the better understanding
of the country, mentality, business behavior and
cultural differences. We have already built interfaces to the major shop systems in Poland and
we will continue adding new partners. Market
players gave us the feedback that we have stimulated the competition in the Polish payment
market and that we will help lower their costs
and get better solutions or innovative products.
In addition, the low cost for international transactions attracts merchants for SOFORT Banking. In comparison to most of other solutions,
SOFORT Banking does not offer higher rates for
international transactions such as for domestic
ones.

With the payment system SOFORT
Banking, SOFORT Überweisung Paycode and the online verification system
SOFORT Ident, SOFORT AG offers innovative products for a secure payment
of merchandise and digital goods on
the Internet. With its product SOFORT
Banking, the company based in Gauting near Munich is the market leader
amongst the direct transfer procedures
in Germany. Over 25,000 E-commerce
shops process more than two million
transactions with SOFORT Banking per
month. Apart from Germany, the service can also be used in Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, France, the Netherlands
and the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain
and Poland.

In hindsight, was it a good decision to enter
the Polish market and was the decision made
at the right time?
Yes, we are sure it was the right decision. At the
moment, Poland is the market with our highest growth rate and taking this into account we
would be happy to have entered earlier. Poland
has a really high potential for our product and
we are looking forward to make our contribution in the fast developing of the e-commerce
market in Poland.
Taking into account the strategic location of
Poland in Europe, was SOFORT AG’s investment into the Polish branch the first step
made towards the further expansion into the
Eastern European markets?
As explained, we want to establish a successful
pan-European e-commerce payment service,
therefore we will continue adding more countries. Planned are two more countries by the
end of 2014. We have two strategic hubs for the
future expansion to Eastern Europe: Poznan in
Poland and Vienna in Austria.

Partners

26.

I WANT

MORE GROWTH.
I WANT IT NOW.
SOFORT Banking – the international
payment system that benefits you.

> 25,000
online shops
> 12 million user
transaction fees
from 0,8%
> 100 shopsystem
interfaces

s:
ntact unal@
co

rnatio
les.inte rt.com
sa
sofo

YOUR ADVANTAGES WITH SOFORT.
SOFORT Banking is a direct payment system and works like an automated advanced payment
(by bank transfer) within seconds.
Use the advantages of the practical and secure SOFORT Banking as self-evident payment system in
your online shop. Your customers pay with their familiar online banking details without any additional
registration.
Available in 11 European countries (AT, BE, CH, DE, ES, FR, IT, HU, NL, PL, UK)
Currency conversion is possible with SOFORT XXL

www.sofort.com

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

5. Inventory management and logistics
5.1. Number of eCommerce

orders

More than 50% of the entities in Poland receive on average 100 orders per
month, and only 7.8% carry out more
than 1,000 orders. The share of stores
filling less than 100 orders per month
has declined in recent years from 54.9%
to 50.6%, and the share of stores carrying more than 1,000 orders has risen
by just 1.1%. The obtained data justifies the low number of people working
in Polish online stores - 73.4% of them
employ only 1 to 5 people.

Are you satisfied with the
courier services?

Figure 5.1.

5.2. Popular courier services
In Poland, as many as 86.4% of online
retailers are satisfied with the courier
services and only 3.9% are dissatisfied.
This result proves the competitiveness
of the market and the high level of customer service provided by the courier
companies.

The largest increase in the
Polish market share among
the courier services was
gained by DHL.

Figure 5.2.

Popularity of courier services in Poland

[%] 0

10

20

30

19,6

DHL

14,6

GLS

13,8

Siódemka

10,7

K-EX

86,4%

7,5

Opek

6,8

InPost

3,2
3,0

EMS Pocztex

no

Schenker
Raben

hard to say

50

29,8

DPD

9,6%

40

41,6

UPS

3,9%

yes

According to our study, UPS is the
leader (41.60%) of courier companies in
Poland. DPD ranks second (29.80%), followed by DHL (19.60%), which gained
the largest increase in the Polish market
share among the courier services in the
last 3 years. Such classification may suggest that e-stores pay significant attention to the quality of service, because
the three courier companies are far
from the cheapest ones on the market.

2,9

Spedpol

0,2

TNT

0,2

other

3,9

Partners

28.

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

6. Shopping cart software
From 2009 to 2012, we have observed
within the Polish eCommerce arena a
very dynamic shift in the market share
for SaaS platforms. Since 2009 their
popularity has basically doubled from
14.4% to 29.1%. SaaS solutions have enjoyed a great boon to their popularity
catapulting them into the leading position ahead of licensed solutions with
a score of 26.8% at that time. In recent
years popularity of licenced software
with self hosting has dropped by more
than 10%. This process is consistent
with global trends visible in developed
markets.

In terms of the IT solutions
popularity, the Polish
eCommerce follows global
trends.

Figure 6.1.

6.1. Technological solutions in

the Polish eCommerce

The leader of SaaS platforms in Poland
is the fast growing Shoper, which was
identified by more than 9.1% of respondents. The second most popular option
in terms of building online shops appeared to be using a free open source
license (28.1%). The clear leader in
open source software is, as every year,
osCommerce (12.0%), although its position may soon be threatened by the
more mature Presta Shop (9.1%). The
third most popular option for running a
web store is developing a custom solution (14,5%).

Only 15.9% of store owners decided to
purchase a licence to build their businesses. The leaders of the licenced software category are SOTE (6.1%), KQS.
Store (4.4%) and i-shop (1.6%).

Buying licensed software
has become a less popular
option for running an
online store.

eCommerce solutions used in Poland in 2009 and 2012
[%] 0

5

10

15

20

30

35

14,4

Software as a Service (SaaS)

29,1
21,3

free, Open Source Software (OSS)

28,1
26,8

licensed software, own hosting

15,9
19,6

dedicated software, comissioned

14,5
15,7

own, copyrighted software
hard to say

25

10,0
2,1
2,4
2009

2012

Partners

29.

eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

Figure 6.2.

future

Type of software that is going to be used by Polish online retailers in the

12,6%
13,7%
SaaS
free, OSS
licenced, with own hosting
dedicated app, comissioned
hard to say

8,4%
17,9%
17,9%
29,5%

Figure 6.3.

The most popular eCommerce solutions in Poland
[%] 0

5

10

15

13,8

dedicated software, commissioned

12,0

osCommerce

9,6


9,1

Shoper

8,4

Presta Shop

6,1

SOTE

5,3

Click Shop

4,9

IAI-Shop
iStore

4,4

KQS.store

4,4
3,0

Redcart

2,0

Magento
SaaS

dedicated software, commissioned

free, Open Source


licenced, with own hosting

Partners

30.

WANT TO EXPAND
YOUR eBUSINESS
TO THE POLISH MARKET?


USE OUR
KNOW-HOW
TO DO IT RIGHT
Market
research

Complying with
the legal norms
Website
translation
& proofreading

Organization
of the branch
Liaising
with partners

Marketing & PR

We launched the Trusted Shops services
on the Polish market in 2010
SEE CASE STUDY
European leading seal of approval for online shops

DotcomRiver.com
+48 71 7889510


eCOMMERCE

POLAND 2013

About the Editor
Dotcom River Sp. z o.o.

Published: February 2014

Dotcom River is a software developer, providing customized, web and
mobile applications for clients from
around the world. Dotcom River’s
solutions streamline daily operations
of Polish and German online shops,
financial and postal services, certification authorities and interactive
agencies.

This report is an executive summary,
created on the basis of data collected
by Dotcom River during detailed studies in 2009-2013. The research involved
more than 1,900 e-retailers, and nearly
12,000 e-consumers. The data comes
from the original reports:

Dotcom River also executes market
research and economic analysis. The
company supports scientific activities
and organizes trainings and industry
conferences, such as DobryKupiec.pl.
Leveraging comprehensive knowledge about Polish eCommerce, the
company provides consultation and
helps to facilitate and coordinate entry of foreign businesses into the Polish market.

eHandel Polska 2012
Published: October 21, 2012
ISBN: 978-83-930264-3-2
eHandel Polska 2010
Published: October 30, 2011
ISBN: 978-83-930264-2-5

Centre for Retail Research
Online Retailing: Britain and Europe 2012
http://www.retailresearch.org/onlineretailing.
php

European Commission (Eurostat),
Internet use in households and by individuals in 2012
Published: December 13, 2012
http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/

Polish Ministry of Treasury,
Forecasts for Polish e-commerce market in
2013
Published: March 7, 2013
http://msp.gov.pl/portal/en/88/4005/

Contact to the Editor:
Dotcom River Sp. z o.o.
ul. Buska 9/5
53-326 Wroclaw
Poland
tel. +48 71 / 788 95 10
info@dotcomriver.pl
http://dotcomriver.pl

©

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principles of fair use it is permissible
to cite an extract from the works, provided that it is done in order to explain,
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intelectual property, always stating
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Creation of papers or summaries of the
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prohibited.

Other sources:
eCommerce Europe
Europe B2C ECommerce Report 2013 - Light
Version
Published: May 22, 2013
http://eCommerce-europe.eu;

PMR Research,
Survey 2012
http://research-pmr.com

GUS (Central Statistical Office),
Concise Statistical Yearbook of Poland 2013
Published: June 2013
http://stat.gov.pl/gus/5840_737_ENG_HTML.
htm

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