Polish On-line Consumers: Promising Growing Market

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 WARSAW 001117 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/NCE, EUR/ERA, EEB/CIP EUR/NCE FOR DKOSTELANCIK, BPUTNEY USDOC FOR 4232/ITA/MAC/EUR/JBURGESS, JKIMBALL, MWILSON TREASURY FOR MGAERTNER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECPS ECON EINT EINV PL SUBJECT: Polish On-line Consumers: Promising Growing Market REF: Warsaw 00735 WARSAW 00001117 001.2 OF 002 -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. With high speed internet access becoming ever more common in Poland, the proportion of those with access making purchases increasing, and buyers overwhelmingly reporting positive online experiences, it comes as no surprise that the Polish consumer online market is doing well. U.S. companies should find plenty of opportunity in this segment of the e-commerce market as it matures and is able to support increasing numbers of niche market players. End Summary. -------------- SETTING THE STAGE -------------- ¶2. As mentioned ref, by the end of 2006, 37% of Poles had access to an internet connection. Of those with internet access, almost 25% made a purchase online, an increase from 17% in 2005. Meanwhile, Polish salaries grew 4.8% in 2006 and unemployment dropped 2.7% from 17.6% to 14.9% - providing an increase in disposable income that should further improve online market prospects. Buyers purchased 4 billion zloty ($1.4 billion) worth of goods and services in 2006, supporting more than 800 internet stores and representing 2% of the retail market. Online purchases should see continued robust growth over the next few years, with estimates reaching 16 billion zloty ($5.4 billion) - or 5% of the retail market - by 2010. -------------- SHOW ME THE GOODS -------------- ¶3. Polish consumers can now buy almost anything online. A review of newspaper articles and online research indicates that the most popular categories are books, with 14.2% of online consumers indicating they made such a purchase; followed by clothing, 12.4%; cell phones and accessories, 9.0%; computer equipment and accessories, 8.9%; radios/televisions 8.7%; music, 7.8%; and cosmetics, 7.8%. In those categories, popular items included children's books, cell phones, laptop computers, computer and console games, GPS equipment, DVD movies, MP3 music and players, and perfume. Other purchases included digital cameras and flat screen LCD televisions. Some interesting items in other categories included furnishings and appliances, such as fridges, washers, 
sinks, and fittings, which are common purchases in Poland because new houses and apartments typically are purchased unfinished. When it comes to other interests, purchases include air guns and automotive tires. ¶4. Given the above, the most common items sold online appear to be those favored by the segment of Polish society that is mobile, urban, and independent. However, an interesting finding about Polish online purchasing habits is that some well known brand names are not as popular online as they are in brick and mortar stores. Amongst electronics, Apple's IPod accounts for only 3% of the MP3 players purchased; among fridges, Indesit and Siemens brands are not widely purchased; nor are LG, AEG, and Miele washers,or Firestone and Bridgestone tires. ¶5. The fact that some well known brands are not leaders in the online marketplace suggests two explanations: first, some companies less well known in the overall market have been able to quickly and successfully establish a popular online brand; and second, Polish consumers still strongly consider pricing when making purchasing decisions. For example, in Apple's case, IPod's brand awareness and "cool factor" is not enough for Poles to accept IPod's relatively high pricing over other lower cost brands. -------------- WHERE THE MARKET IS HEADED -------------- ¶6. As the online market grows, existing online companies are broadening their offerings - for example, a spokesperson for leading online store Merlin.pl, with more than 60 million zloty ($20.3 million) in sales, explained that the firm is diversifying from books to music, toys, and electronics. In addition, new players have appeared over the last year, specializing in the various niches that a larger market can support. These players include hoopla.pl, specializing in appliances; komputronik.pl, computers and software; travelplanet.pl, travel and tour services; and gadugadu.pl, a voice over internet telephony service. WARSAW 00001117 002.2 OF 002 ¶7. As the number of players in the market increase, comparison sites that allow consumers to perform side-by-side comparisons of products offered by different sellers are becoming increasingly popular. The comparison leader is ceneo.pl, which has one sixth of the monthly visitor traffic (344,000 visitors) of market leader Merlin.pl. Other popular comparison sites include skapiec.pl (235,000) and kupujemy.pl (147,000). ¶8. While almost everything can now be purchased online, there are still some market niches that are not developing quickly. A leading newspaper reporter on technology matters gave us one example - internet grocery delivery services. While this service is available in Warsaw, outside of the capital the lack of sufficient logistical and transportation networks makes it difficult to establish reliable delivery services of fresh produce. The Polish public also remains reluctant to accept these services where they do exist due to concerns about leaving groceries unattended on front doorsteps. -------------- PLUSES AND MINUSES -------------- ¶9. Consumers appear to be largely satisfied with Polish e-commerce firms, with surveys of online customers reporting that 82% had positive online purchase experiences. According to internet research and comparison firm Ceneo.pl, among those reporting positive experiences the most important factors cited were: ease of ordering, mentioned by 57% of respondents; site design and professionalism, 34%; low prices, 25%, and customer service, 17%. When it came to delivery, consumers indicated that online stores should deliver goods within 3 days of placing the order. ¶10. Among the 18% reporting neutral or negative experiences, 72% mentioned the length of time it took to deliver the order; 23%, the fact that the goods appeared to be available online but were out of stock upon ordering; and 20%, poor or unavailable customer service. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶11. The Polish online consumer market appears to have reached a critical mass in terms of consumer demand, number of players, and public acceptance over the past two years, and is definitely here to stay. Post believes the Polish online consumer market will continue to grow over the next few years and become increasingly more diversified as the market becomes large enough to support niche players. There are still some areas where the market has been less successful, with companies having varying levels of success translating a popular brand to a successful online presence. However, there continues to be opportunities for U.S. companies and products as the market matures. ASHE