The Amazon platform launches in Poland
The e-commerce market in Poland used to be dominated by a local brand – Allegro. However, a few months ago, the third biggest American investor in Poland – Amazon – announced the opening of a Polish version of their platform. It was launched on March 2nd, 2021 – this time without any default redirections to the German version of the site.
What does the Polish Amazon site have to offer? Let us have a closer look.
Sellers and customers who are used to the Polish brand and conducting trade in Poland won’t have to change their habits. However, they still might want to look for better solutions. In addition to goods from abroad, Amazon also offers goods from Polish sellers. With the development of new technologies, international trade proves to be a promising business model. The current pandemic situation also shows how easy and convenient online shopping can be. Easy access to online selling platforms enabled many people to shop safely in a time when stationary shops were closed and people were staying home due to the lockdown restrictions.
What does the launch of Amazon.pl mean for sellers and customers?
The diversification of the Polish e-commerce market can be beneficial both for customers who will now have easier access to large quantities of goods, especially goods imported from abroad, and for sellers who can expand their businesses. The Polish version of the Amazon website exposes Polish sellers to the international market, and vice versa.
Expanding to the European market is facilitated by various tools which enable the offers posted on the Polish Amazon website to be found also on Amazon sites in 8 other European countries. This, in turn, allows for a wider range of offers and upscaling of sales.
Introducing new competition for Allegro may also influence the commission fees on sales and listings. For now, this margin does not exceed 15% of the price of goods sold. Amazon offers two more selling plans – the Individual plan, which costs 4 PLN ($0.99) per unit sold, and the Professional plan, which costs 165,91 PLN ($39.99) per month no matter how many units are sold. This distinction seems to determine the target selling group, that is small and medium sized businesses.
Amazon supports small and medium sized businesses also in other ways – from product placement (depending on the selling plan) to logistics solutions and a network of warehouses under the Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA) programme. Nine of such warehouses are located in Poland, providing employment for 18,000 people. Selling on Amazon can also be done directly, depending on the seller’s preferences. In such cases, the sellers are responsible for the shipping the goods, which influences the delivery costs. If you want to learn more about the sales models offered by Amazon, check this article.
What to keep in mind
Finding new customers and opening to international markets may seem overwhelming at first. Amazon, however, makes this process much easier thanks to different sales models, and new technological and logistical solutions. Yet the selling process matters is not all that there is to it - you should also remember about the tax regulations, which vary from country to country. With the help of our tax experts it should not be troublesome. We offer support with all formalities regarding international taxation and expansion to new markets – even with the post-Brexit changes in trade. If you’d like to learn more, please head to this article/strong>.
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