Polish stores are moving to the countryside
The pandemic and remote work gave the phenomenon of moving from the city to the countryside a new dynamic. At the same time the shopping habits of the customers stayed on a high expectations level.
The pandemic time
During the lockdowns, the world's largest metropolises rapidly depopulated. This trend has not spared Polish cities. According to research by the Jagiellonian University, in 2021 as many as 50,000 Poles left the city to live in the countryside. The last such large migration movement in Poland was recorded in 2008 (financial crisis).
The pandemic has changed not only the expectations of employees, but also the approach of employers and forced technological acceleration in many companies, enabling the transition to remote work.
After the restrictions were lifted, many employees did not return to their offices, but decided that they wanted to continue working from home, where they did not waste time on daily transportation and had more comfortable working conditions.
According to the Jagiellonian University, the condition of the economy and the availability of mortgages will have the greatest impact on maintaining this trend.
Demography
The phenomenon of Poles escaping from larger cities is also accompanied by demographic processes, such as the aging of the population and a strong increase in people at retirement age. The Polish Academy of Sciences recently presented a forecast according to which the population of Warsaw will increase to 2.044 million by 2028 and then ... will fall to 1.93 million inhabitants in 2050.
At the same time, the population of the oldest residents of the city will exceed 25% of the total population of Warsaw (currently it is approx. 18%). This means a change in consumption patterns and a decline in the purchasing power of customers in city centers.
The data of the Central Statistical Office for the last year clearly show the migration of Poles from cities to the countryside. The data show that the largest increase in the population concerned primarily rural communes in the vicinity of the largest cities. Out of the 37 largest cities in Poland, population growth was recorded only in eight.
The growing number of rural residents in the vicinity of the largest cities is a growing group of consumers who have shopping habits acquired in large cities. The retail industry follows consumers, which can be seen e.g. in the increase in retail space. The Colliers report shows that shopping centers continue to expand in small cities. Nearly 90% of investments are small retail parks with tenants focused on everyday shopping.
| Biedronka | the biggest Polish retail chain with over 1000 stores in the whole country and ca. 25% of the total market. |
| Żabka | Conveniance stores based on franchaise located mainly in sleeping areas of cities. Żabka likes to test new shopper technologies (automatic kassa, no physical employee) |
| Dino | Polish retail chain focused on the countryside and avoiding cities. Dino stays oldfashioned and avoids new shopper technologies as the research shows that their clients like the traditional version of shopping experience. |
| Lisek | dark store located mainly in larger cities. Lisek has a limited offer but delivers within 10min from the order. The chain is testing now a new solution that offers more products but with the delivery time up to 30min. |
New surroundings, old habits
People have exchanged the urban pace of life for their own space, where they have other priorities. But at the same time, they are used to a wide range of assortment, which until now was available in large cities.
This is the task for retailers: to be able to respond to the needs in the city and beyond, without taking away the feeling that their
offer is complete, predictable and adequate to the customer's needs.
For the last 20 years, the largest chains have concentrated around cities and towns. With the development of the largest centers, operators slowly began to enter the suburbs. For many years, small towns surrounding large cities were the mainstay of independent trade. Now Dino is successfully conquering them, offering a better standard of shopping and a better-chosen assortment. Four years ago, Biedronka launched a smaller store format and a franchise for small villages and towns. Smaller towns and villages are also favored by Żabka, which will be good at implementing its convenience offer in such places.
Research shows that 34% of consumers in Poland are ready to pay extra for the delivery of products and services that make their lives easier. These expectations are also met by the so-called dark stores, which deliver the ordered goods to customers very quickly. For example, the Polish chain of Lisek stores, in addition to the classic service guaranteeing deliveries in 10 minutes, is testing the Lisek plus project - with a wider range and delivery time of up to 30 minutes - the concept is dedicated to rural areas.
The pandemic has also changed the shopping preferences of city dwellers. Closed shopping malls caused interest in local shops. In this way, the trend of residential high streets is developing, where more and more people develop local commercial activities. This trend is supported by e-commerce: stores used so far only for shopping have become a parcel collection point and thus ensured their resistance to lockdowns.
Modern countryside shoppers
Suburban formats need to be more flexible and compact to be closer to customers. Investing in a new format needs to be more thoughtful. A well-adjusted pricing and assortment strategy is necessary. The store should be effective in terms of operating costs, but also attractive to the customer. Proper interior design and the layout of the sales room should provide him with a high-quality shopping experience and encourage him to return to the given outlet.
Biedronka, which has been creating smaller format stores for residents of smaller towns for several years, knows this. In 2023, the Muszkeiter Group also wants to start testing a small supermarket, which will be developed in urban and suburban concepts.
It is worth emphasizing that
consumers will not give up their current habits after moving to the countryside.
They expect fresh, quality, healthy, local products and premium offers. They also want products that are ready to eat right away. Saving time is a factor that will continue to gain in importance. Consumers want to save time because they prefer to spend it with their family, hobbies or sports. Moving to the countryside is supposed to help you escape the hustle and bustle of the city, but not from a good shopping offer.
Source: Wiadomości handlowe nr 5/ 2022