In the 20 years since Poland joined the European Union, the country’s exports of goods and services have increased nearly sixfold, from €60 billion to €350 billion [1]. According to a survey conducted by Amazon in partnership with Implement Consulting Group, the National Chamber of Commerce (KIG), GONITO, and Ipsos, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) account for over one-third (34%) of Poland’s foreign trade. In addition, 98% of them agree that the international sales opportunities provided by the EU single market have benefited their businesses, with 77% of SME exports remaining within the EU.
“Advanced sales tools and access to the global marketplace know-how enable entrepreneurs to quickly adapt and fine-tune their development strategies in response to evolving customer needs,” said Katarzyna Ciechanowska-Ciosk, Country Leader, Amazon.pl. “We want to provide sellers with the tools and services that help them build a strong business both at home and internationally. Entrepreneurs can rely on our support in virtually every area of their commercial activity.”
Borderless growth of Polish entrepreneurs
In 2023, 90% of Polish Amazon sellers sold their products internationally. Around 70% exported products to EU countries, generating over PLN 4.3 billion (over €1 billion) in sales. The top-performing product categories included home & kitchen, beauty, clothing, and business, industry & science; and the most popular export destinations were Germany, France, Italy, Austria, and Spain. And more than 55% of Polish sellers exported outside the EU, with the U.S. being the most popular non-EU destination.
In 2023, revenues of over PLN 800 million (over €186 million) were reported by SMEs from the Mazovian voivodeship (province) – the highest revenue from international sales on Amazon – followed by those from Lesser Poland (over PLN 610 million/€141 million) and Greater Poland (over PLN 575 million/€133 million). For many, cross-border e-commerce became a turning point that has led to significant business success.
Mateusz Kacprzak from Retoo, an electronics, small home appliances, and home accessories company, said: “Joining Amazon was a major milestone for Retoo’s growth. Our products are now available in eight European stores: Germany, France, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Italy, and Poland, accounting for over 30% of Retoo’s sales. In 2023, we completed more than 519,000 orders. In the coming weeks, we also plan to expand into the UK.”
To support sellers in expanding their international sales, Amazon implements development programmes across various European countries, tailoring them to the needs of local businesses. Initiatives such as cross-border.pl, a project launched in 2023 by the National Chamber of Commerce (KIG) in partnership with Amazon, play a key role in facilitating and promoting foreign expansion among Polish SMEs. These initiatives provide know-how, tools, and training to help entrepreneurs start and grow their international online sales.
“The results we’ve achieved in the first year of cross-border.pl are very promising,” said Anna Zacharjasz, Deputy Director at KIG’s Office for Communications and Business Development. “We have trained hundreds of entrepreneurs and created a comprehensive knowledge base, including a catalogue of 127 marketplaces across 24 countries. The mounting interest in international e-commerce among SMEs bodes well for the continued expansion of cross-border e-commerce, which is becoming a driver of the country’s economy.”
Logistics as a catalyst for growth
Practical technologies and efficient logistics are essential for scaling a business quickly. After 10 years of Amazon’s presence in Poland, the country is now home to 11 state-of-the-art Amazon fulfilment centres, which have helped thousands of SMEs access hundreds of millions of customers worldwide.
Artur Langier, Key Account Manager at luggage and handbag SME OCHNIK, said: “We launched OCHNIK on Amazon in late 2021, and our results vastly exceeded expectations within the first 12 months, despite the fact that we were only offering products in the luggage and handbag categories at that time. We are now primarily focused on growth in Poland and Germany, but we also have a presence in France, and we are eagerly looking at opportunities in Belgium and the Netherlands. We are working on expanding our product range and further expansion into Italy and Spain. With the logistics solutions available, the fulfilment and returns processes across Europe have become much more efficient, especially in terms of speed, timeliness, and customer service quality.”
On Amazon, sellers can either manage fulfilment themselves or leverage our international distribution network. The Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) programme enables them to outsource storage, packaging, and shipping of products, as well as customer service and returns.
The FBA service also allows them to reduce logistics costs by an average of 70% compared to handling these processes independently. “In 2023, 47% of Polish SMEs used this service,” said Janina Rampp, Head of Marketplace at Amazon.pl.
To meet the needs of SMEs and make it easier for them to start selling on Amazon, we have offered sellers discounts of up to 50% on FBA as of August 2024. For new entrepreneurs, we also introduced a waiver of commission fees and subscription fees for the first six months after launching their sales.
[1] Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy, 2024.
