The valuation of this industry increased by 25% during the year, in contrast to the previous year, when it recorded a decline. Companies operating globally are currently doing their best.
| position | name | value (in billions of dollars) | growth (y/y) | industry |
| 1 | Allegro | 34,6 | 30,5% | trading platform |
| 2 | STS | 3,2 | 37,4% | betting |
| 3 | CCC | 2,5 | -14,1% | footwear |
| 4 | Displate | 1,5 | 98,1% | metal posters |
| 5 | X-kom | 1,5 | -2,6% | computer hardware |
| 6 | TIM | 1,1 | 46,2% | electrotechnical equipment |
| 7 | Tylko | 0,7 | 48,0% | furniture |
| 8 | Answear | 0,6 | 82,0% | clothes |
| 9 | Oponeo | 0,6 | -1,1% | tyres |
| 10 | Superauto24 | 0,3 | 48,8% | automotive |
Source: Forbes, data as of the end of April 2023
The point of reference for the Polish e-commerce market is Allegro – the largest online shopping portal in Poland. In the third quarter of 2022, it recorded a decrease in revenues, but it made up for it in the next one, ending the year with a 23.2% increase in sales. The company owed this not only to attractive prices but also to the increased interest in the so-called everyday shopping. With fast delivery, Allegro has become a viable alternative for grocery chains. The company can also boast of a steady increase in the shopping basket of its customers (11.3%). Still, its development opportunities in Poland are slowly starting to run out since the number of its customers equaled the number of households in Poland (14.1M). It does not mean, however, that there is no way to increase revenues, and a good example is Allegro Pay, which, after connecting to the largest trading platform in the country, quickly grows into one of the largest Polish lenders. In 2022, sales reached 1.12B dollars, more than mBank (1.08B dollars).
Other e-commerce businesses in Poland are also beginning to feel the limits of growth opportunities. An example is eobuwie operating in the CCC group, which recorded a 2% decrease last year, perhaps because shoes are bought at most twice a year and not more often. The company compensated for this with a significant increase in another subsidiary, Modivo, trading clothes online (over 80M dollars in revenues and 42% growth), translating into a total increase in CCC revenues from e-commerce by 7%. Answear, which specializes in the sale of clothes, also has increasing revenues from e-commerce, which increased its revenues in this area by 42% last year. And now they account for 32% of the company’s total sales.
The Polish e-commerce market is divided into those whose results have reached the ceiling and those with enormous growth potential. The former include industry pioneers, such as Allegro or eobuwie, but also Oponeo, which, after a huge sales jump in 2021 (42%), significantly slowed down the next year (-12%). It also diversified its offer by establishing the Dadelo bicycle company, which is growing at over 40% annually, and its share in total revenues has increased from 15% to 27% within three years.
A product that seemed even more challenging to sell online is cars. And yet, Superauto24 succeeded in this market – it increased its gross profit from 3.8M dollars to 5.5M dollars during the year.
The most significant potential for growth, however, has companies that, from the beginning, focused on global operations, even in the most niche industries. Every year, this thesis is confirmed by Displate, which sends metal posters worldwide for over 120 Million dollars. However, the company Tylko, which operates in the furniture industry, has even more significant potential here. It started with the sale of bookcases. Over time, wardrobes were added, which it successfully sells throughout Europe, and kitchens are ahead of it.
Based on Forbes 2023/06