The popular online marketplaces to trade your goods in most European countries include eBay and Amazon. However, the same platforms will not bring you the desired sales if you are in Poland. Why? People from Poland prefer Allegro to these platforms, as their favorite online marketplace to get all the items they want.
And with over 14,5 million active user base at the end of Q3 2023 and 20 million visiting customers every month on Allegro.pl, Allegro has managed to hold a significant position in Poland.
Allegro – the top Polish online marketplace
Allegro is one of the leading technology-driven trading companies in Poland and in Europe. It was founded in 1999 in Poznań and today has offices also in Warsaw, Toruń, Wrocław, and Kraków. At the very start, the company created by just a few people was headquartered in the basement of a computer wholesaler and the first version of the site fitted on just one floppy disk. The e-commerce market in Poland was still in its infancy at that time, and Allegro was one of the businesses that contributed the most to its growth. Since then, over a dozen or so years, the company has undergone a huge transformation. From an auction site for hobbyists, it has evolved into the most popular e-commerce platform. Allegro currently employs over 8,000 people. The large increase in employment is primarily due to the acquisition of 100 percent of Mall Group and CZC, which was finalized in 2022.
For more than two decades of existence, the Allegro platform has evolved to become the most trusted and recognizable Polish online marketplace. The report “E-commerce in Poland 2023” conducted by Gemius – a renowned market research company – revealed that Allegro, as in previous years, ranked first in terms of spontaneous brand awareness, with 73% of respondents spontaneously indicating it first, and 86% overall.
Furthermore, when analyzing market players in the online shopping category, Allegro dominates in terms of the number of users and time of use – average usage time is more than 1.5 hours. In comparison, spontaneous familiarity with eBay is only 5%. The progress and regression of eBay over the last decade in the Polish market can be considered as a typical example of how renowned global brands stand the risk of losing their top spots to local, stronger competitors.
21 million accounts have been created on the platform so far. Customers buy over 1.2 million products every day, of which over 95% are new items, sold at a fixed price, with a warranty and insurance. Allegro offers modern on-line financial services, such as 0% instalments, renewable instalments Raty Od.nowa and leasing. Allegro is home to more than 140,000 merchants: not only the world’s biggest brands or biox4 coupon code, but mostly small and medium Polish enterprises. Allegro continues to improve standards on the e-commerce market by fostering consumer rights and supporting the development of entrepreneurship.
A significant part of the Allegro Group, Allegro is a top e-commerce company. But the firm is also expanding into other countries and, step by step, developing its position. In the Czech Republic, for example, the Allegro.cz marketplace quickly attracted 800,000 active buyers within the group’s three key brands (Allegro.cz, MALL, and CZC). Allegro operates in a total of six countries: Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia and Slovenia.
Allegro has successfully dominated the Polish online market due to a couple of reasons. The first is the excellent management it has enjoyed over time, and its continuous strive to improve its brand image with the view to become an acknowledged leader in the Polish market.
Allegro vs. Amazon – the differences
At Allegro portal each product from every company is sold individually. For instance, a seller who wants to put a product up for sale on Allegro is required to create a different card for that product. Such card must contain all the information about the product, including the name, photos, description, technical information, price, etc.
Thus, in a situation where several sellers are offering the same products, each seller will provide its product card. When a buyer searches for a particular product, there are several cards displayed, each from a different seller. This gives the buyer the opportunity to make comparisons easily and settle for the best. Amazon, on the other hand, uses a single product card for each product, and buyers can only choose their preferred seller from a list.
Allegro came into existence in 1999 as an auction site. While the purpose of the site remains the same, there has been a slight change in its mode of operations – sales no longer follow the auction model. The prices of products are now fixed, but there are slight differences across different sellers.
Top Polish marketplace – what is the future?
The Allegro brand is very much prominent but is not the only player in the market. For example, Amazon wanted to enter the Polish market fully and opened a fulfillment center in Wroclaw in 2014. Another emerging online marketplace in Poland is AliExpress, perhaps because it sells certain exotic items that are not available on Allegro.
Amazon’s recognition is already slightly better than eBay’s, reaching up to 20%, and AliExpres follows closely behind with 15%. However, these counts are not as high as those of Allegro.
In October 2023, the number of users of allegro.pl and the Allegro app increased to 18,963,072 from 18,569,574 in September 2023. As for Amazon, in October 2023, the number of Amazon site users (.pl, .de, .com, .co, .uk – traffic generated from Poland) increased to 6,385,716 from 6,070,788 in September 2023. And as for Aliexpres, the number of users of aliexpress.com and the Aliexpress app fell to 8,735,202 in October 2023 from 8,838,720 in September 2023.
So, of these three platforms, the brightest future is for Allegro.
Selling on Allegro in Poland
Registration and setting up a method of payment
Registering on Allegro is simple. Simply sign up at allegro.pl by clicking on “My Allegro->Sign Up” and following the instructions. You will find a link on your Allegro account that helps you to create your PayU account, which you will use in receiving all funds from Allegro.
Bank account
You do not need a local bank account to start selling on Allegro. You can transfer all your funds from PayU to other bank accounts.
Currency
The acceptable currency on Allegro is Polish Zloty (PLN) and Euro (EUr). However, your local bank can help you covert the PLN and EUR into your preferred currency.
Standard and recommended shipping and returns policies
It is highly advisable that you offer free shipping or or joining the Allegro Smart! program. Likewise, providing a local return address is highly recommended, although not compulsory.
Acceptable type/size of sellers and suitable products
Every size or type of sellers is welcome on Allegro, likewise all products.
Handling stock
For best results, it is highly recommended that you get a local warehouse. If, for any reason, you are unable to secure one, offer quick and free shipping for your products.
Other specifics
Offer listings and customer service in Polish, English, and Ukrainian language. The listing design on Allegro can be customized, so get the best out of this by adding relevant information.
Conclusion
There is no much difference in how Allegro works compared to other top online marketplaces of the world. You can sell in either PLN or Euro, or choose another currency compatible with your local bank. Sign up for an account, use the platform in several languages, and start trading as soon as you’re ready to do so.
