Future formats, present woes

The Polish retail market remains among those facing the most challenges on the global market, according to the participants of the third annual "What's going on in Retailing?!" conference, organized by Informedia Polska.

For two days, top retail-industry managers discussed the current market and future prospects for Polish retail. The main finding was that the market has found equilibrium, with all types of store formats developing rapidly. According to Ryszard Tomaszewski, CEO of Tesco Polska, competition between formats is fierce. "It is not so obvious which format is the winning one and I believe in the near future it is going to stay that way," Tomaszewski says.

Participants said that the diversity of formats on the market is the reason why some international companies are not considering entering Poland in the near future. "At some point the formats are starting to overlap and the differences are difficult to discern," said Pedro Pereira da Silva, CEO of Jeronimo Martins Dystrybucja, the owner of the Biedronka chain of discount supermarkets. Da Silva noted that discount stores are beginning to offer more services usually found only in larger hypermarkets, meaning the traditional grocery store format is becoming extinct. He added, however, that the Polish market offers room for growth to every format.

Surprisingly, legislative hurdles - including proposals to restrict retail trade on Sunday - are not retailers' main concern. "The legislative requirements make it hard on us to operate in Poland, but we can deal with it. The real problem is a lack of employees," stated Katarzyna Warchał, general director of Sainsbury's Europe. Especially in Warsaw, Warchał said, it's difficult to find employees who live near store locations, and workers willing to take the jobs have long commutes. Most participants revealed that their companies will put special emphasis on human resources in their development strategies for the near future.