German hypermarket chain, Kaufland is expanding its online marketplace to Poland and Austria as part of a strategy to grow its e-commerce presence across Europe.
The “go-live” is planned for late summer and follows the launch in Slovakia and Czech Republic last year.
In Germany, the Kaufland marketplace is one of the largest online marketplaces with up to 32 million online visitors per month and more than 45 million products in over 6,400 categories. Although Kaufland is already one of the leading food retailers in Poland, it is aiming to tap into an online retail market that recently recorded growth rates of more than 10 percent.
Poland currently has the largest e-commerce market in Central and Eastern Europe estimated to be worth USD 27.8 billion. Last year, Czech Republic and Romania ranked second and third respectively while Hungary and Bulgaria were well behind with a total market value of USD 6 billion. Additionally, the Kaufland marketplace is now expanding for the first time into Austria, a country in which Kaufland does not have a brick-and-mortar presence.
“Our Kaufland marketplace got off to a very good start in Europe. In Slovakia and the Czech Republic we are already one of the largest online marketplaces in the country. We get a lot of positive feedback from dealers and customers. Accordingly, expansion into additional countries is the next big and logical step for us this year,” Gerald Schönbucher, CEO of Kaufland e-commerce said.
This year, the Kaufland marketplace is also rolling out its international Fulfillment by Kaufland service. The Kaufland marketplace for retailers picks, packs and ships the orders directly to the customer, . enabling orders to reach customers even more quickly. The first retailers are already using the service with more expected to follow in the next few months.
