Dear Clients, Dear Partnets,

All Valians International Team wishes you a Happy New Year!

The Polish Industrial Development Agency (PARP) is offering 60 M PLN (€13.3 M) of European funds to attract foreign start-ups to Poland. These start-ups can obtain grants of PLN 50,000 to 250,000 (€11,000 to €55,000) per month provided they invest at least PLN 7 million (€1.6 million) in Poland. The grants will be awarded from March 2021. At the time of the first edition of this program in 2018-2019, about a hundred start-ups had taken advantage of the program to set up in Poland.

Source: DG Trésor

At the Global e-Mobility Forum held in Warsaw in mid-November, Solaris was elected world leader in electromobility for its extended range of electric buses. The company’s sales in Poland are up 197% and represent 96% of sales on the Polish electric bus market over the first 3 quarters of 2020.

Solaris’ activity abroad is flourishing: the company has been the leader in the electric bus market in Western Europe since the beginning of the year, reaching up to 83% market share in Italy. Solaris has also signed a contract to deliver its first 2 hydrogen-powered buses to Sweden in autumn 2021.

As one of the European leaders in e-mobility, Solaris is also one of the leading manufacturers when it comes to meeting the purchasing needs of public transport operators. This is reflected in the company’s sales structure. The number of electric buses sold and ordered by Solaris has been growing dynamically in recent years. In 2019 alone, the manufacturer supplied its customers with a total of 162 buses equipped with batteries. The production organization and the after-sales service have also been continuously modified. Last year, low- and zero-emission buses accounted for 40% of all vehicles sold by Solaris. Every year, the company consolidates its position as the leader in e-mobility in public transport in Europe.

The company is developing rapidly and recently won another customer. The Swedish operator Transdev has signed a contract with Solaris Bus & Coach for the supply of two hydrogen-powered buses. The buses will offer even greater comfort to passengers and will help to clean the air and reduce noise levels throughout the city. The vehicles ordered can accommodate 85 people. Air conditioning, closed-circuit television cameras and a modern passenger information system will ensure passenger safety. Passengers will be able to charge their cell phones via USB ports and use wireless internet on board. For people with reduced mobility, a wheelchair bay is provided. In addition, the buses will be equipped with the so-called “Scandinavian package”, i.e. additional equipment and thermal insulation elements, specially designed to enable the bus to cope with low temperatures and ensure travel comfort for passengers and driver even in the coldest winters.

Tallinn public transport company Tallinna Linnatranspordi AS (TLT) and bus manufacturer Solaris Bus & Coach have signed an agreement for the supply of 100 additional compressed gas buses.

In Poland Solaris has concluded a contract with the municipality of Toruń (Kujawsko-Pomorskie) for the delivery of 6 new electric buses within the next 18 months.

This is the second time that Solaris’ activity has been recognized at the Global e-Mobility Forum international conference. In 2019, at the e-Mobility Leader gala, the manufacturer received the Polish e-Mobility Leader award for its role in transforming urban public transport in Poland. This year’s Global e-Mobility Leader Award confirms that Solaris has continued to develop its portfolio of zero-emission buses and to contribute effectively to changing the image of public transport, including at the global level.

Source: Solaris

The Polish Internet Things market in 2019 was worth $2.2 billion. With the current annual growth rate of almost 24%, its value in 2026 will exceed one trillion dollars. However, not all aspects are keeping up with this trend, according to the report of the Związek Cyfrowa Polska.

Big growth

According to the report “Smart home, smart cities, smart world. The development of the Internet of Things”, Poles are enthusiasts of digital solutions and increasingly reach for new technologies, including IoT solutions. According to the estimates of the Digital Poland Association, the value of the Polish Internet Things market in 2019 was over 1,8 billion euros, 6.4% more than in the previous year. In addition, the rate of development of this market is expected to be nearly 24% per year. These optimistic results are also confirmed by the DES 2020 digital economy ranking. In his opinion, Poland has improved its 2019 result and was ranked 23rd (up two positions), but is still close to the end of the rate.

As far as the use of IoT in Poland is concerned, according to data from the Digital Poland Association, 23% of Poles use solutions based on IoT. However, the potential is much greater. 55% of respondents indicated that they would like to use it in the coming years. The fastest growing market segment, not only in Poland, is smart home, which is estimated to grow to 100 billion euros by 2022. Over 40% of respondents in Poland declare that they are not interested in this type of solutions.

The greatest potential for development on the IoT market in Poland has vacuuming robots. By 2019, the device was used by 300,000 people, and 2.5 million people reported to want use it. In turn, the programmers of home heating are used in 400 thousand households, and 1.7 million more are planning to buy it. Light management systems are used in 0.2 million households and 1.6 million households are interested in it.

Main barriers to growth

According to the authors of the report, Polish law is not keeping up with the rapid development of the IoT market. To this day, there is not a single legal act in the Polish legal system that would comprehensively cover the issues of the Internet of Things, which would support the development of the Internet of Things market. Another barrier is cybersecurity and the associated low confidence in this type of solutions. Without changing the attitude of enterprises in Poland and the culture of using new technologies, Poland will continue to be behind other countries in the world. The final barrier mentioned in the report is education. In Poland, only seven universities offer courses in the field of Internet of Things. This is definitely not enough.

Source: IctMarketExperts

Poland’s first state-sponsored electric car plant is due to go into production by 2024 in a region heavily dependent on coal mining (Jaworzno), the state-owned car manufacturer ElectroMobility Poland (EMP) announced on Tuesday.

The value of the investment has been estimated at two billion zlotys (450 million euros) while the whole Izera project should amount to five billion zlotys (around 1.1 billion euros).

The plant is expected to hire around 3,000 people and to create around 12,000 additional job positions among its suppliers and subcontractors.

This decision should bring Poland closer to the European climate target of carbon neutrality by 2050.

Source: EuropeAutonews

In 2020, the e-commerce market in Poland will experience the strongest growth for several years. In addition, this market is forecast to grow at double-digit rates over the next three years. Our Managing Partner, Cédric FROMONT was glad to give Finnish companies from Business Finland its expertise of the e-commerce market in Poland in collaboration with the largest marketplace in the country Allegro.pl

Poland will earmark PLN 2.5 billion (EUR 541.3 million) from the National Road Fund to the Safe Road Infrastructure Programme for 2021-2024 aimed at increasing the protection of road users, the Infrastructure Ministry said in a press release on Thursday.

The ministry said public consultations on the safe roads project have already started. The main goal of the programme, run by the Infrastructure Ministry, is to improve road safety on national roads administered by Poland’s General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways (GDDKiA).

The purpose of the project is also to reduce the number of accidents and their victims, the ministry said.

Infrastructure Minister Andrzej Adamczyk said that road traffic safety is a government priority, next to the construction of a modern network of highways and expressways, support for local governments in the construction and modernisation of local roads and the fight against transport exclusion.

Under the programme, GDDKiA will build sidewalks, pedestrian and bicycle routes, bicycle paths, bus bays, left-turn lanes, footbridges and crossings. The works will also include the installation of road signs and traffic lights at intersections and pedestrian crossings and improvement of visibility at intersections and roadway entrances, including entry and exit lanes.

Source: thefirstnews

In 2019, the total turnover of the 440 Polish video game studios, which employ 9,700 people, reached PLN 2.1bn (€ 470m). The Polish PC video game market is the 7th largest market in the world with 16 million players.

The CD Projekt video game studio, which is one of the most successful companies in Poland, continues its rapid development.  In the first half of 2020, CD Projekt benefited from the lockdown linked to the Covid19 pandemic to increase its turnover by 70% in annual turnover (364 M PLN, 81 M €) and to triple its net profit  (147 M PLN, 33 M €).

Source : PMR

03.11.2020

Polish plateform Allegro, a competitor to Amazon in Poland, is listed on the stock exchange as of Monday, October 12. It is one of the largest IPOs on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Managed by a French, François Nuyts, Allegro is showing strong growth.

For François Nuyts, this Monday, October 12 is an important day. With its initial public offering, the Allegro platform that he runs enters the big leagues. The company will be introduced to the market at an estimated value of 9.4 billion euros.

This French boss, originally from Bordeaux, knows the e-commerce market well: he cut his teeth at Amazon, where he participated as a former director in the establishment of the American giant in Spain and Italy.

Founded 21 years ago, Allegro has become the most popular e-commerce site in Poland, crowding out Ebay. The eminent arrival of its competitor Amazon in the country does not seem to worry the French boss who recently told the press: “We think there are a lot of things that we do well enough, if not better than any competitor. “. This assurance comes from the very good performance of its platform. Its net income continues to grow: + 31% in 2019 and + 51% the first six months of this year.

Praised by the Polish disapora, Allegro exports mainly to Great Britain and wishes to develop further internationally

Source: RFI

13.10.2020

Bio Planet’s sales in June of this year reached EUR 3.21 million, which is a 32% increase over June 2019 sales, which stood at EUR 2.43 million.

In June, the company added around 200 new products to its offering. Most of the new products are products from suppliers who have cooperated with Bio Planet for years.

“We have introduced new products in the offer, among others, Italian Vivo Spray spray oils and 10 new products under Bio Planet’s own brands, including Kłodawa salt and lemon juices” the company said .

Bio Planet S.A. sells organic food, which it packages under its own brands such as: Bio Planet, Biominki, Bio Europa, Crystalline Planet and Bio Raj.

source : portalspozywczy.pl

14.07.2020

With €7.8 billion of total transacted volumes, 2019 was a record-breaking year for the Polish investment market, outpacing the previous best-ever market result of 2018 by over €600 million, states a report published by Jones Lang LaSalle, an American commercial real estate services company.

With this exceptional score, the Polish investment market grew in 2019 for the 5th consecutive year. Investor activity in the first half of 2020 was maintained at an extremely high level as a continuation of the record-breaking last year. According to the preliminary estimates, the value of investment transactions in the first half of 2020 totaled nearly €2.9 billion – the second-best result in the history of Poland’s real estate sector. Despite the global pandemic, the first six months of the year saw a continuation of trends that have been observed on the market for some time now. Industrial and office investors are very much at the fore. Overall, there were almost 60 deals closed throughout the first half of 2020, with office and industrial sectors clearly dominating the investment landscape both in terms of volume and number of transactions.

source : wbj.pl

17.08.2020

The American company Google is planning to invest up to $ 2 billion in the opening of a new data center in Poland. The project could see the light of day at the start of 2021.

Google’s investment in Warsaw will be the largest investment in such infrastructure in Poland.

The data center will be responsible for processing the cloud services of the American company.

Microsoft also announced in May a $ 1 billion investment to have its own data center in the country.

Currently, Google Cloud has six regions in Europe for 23 worldwide.

Source : presse-citron.net

25.06.2020

The popularity of retail brands continues to grow across Europe.

According to the latest edition of PLMA International Private Label Yearbook, the share of retail brands currently exceeds 30% of market share in almost all of Europe.

In Central and Eastern Europe, the market share of retail brands remained above 40% in Austria and above 30% in Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 2019.

In 2018 in Poland, sales of retail brands amounted to PLN 30.6 billion (EUR 6.85 billion), up 5.2% compared to the previous year. This represents 20.1% of sales of consumer products in Poland.

Source: dlahandlu.com

05.29.2020

According to the declaration of Poland’s climate minister, Poland will start building its first nuclear power plant in 2026, with a capacity of 1.0-1.5 gigawatts and fhe facility is expected to be operational by 2033.

For the Polish government, nuclear energy is a solution to wean the country off coal, which currently accounts for almost 80% of energy production, the highest level in the European Union.

The share of coal should therefore fall to around 60% by 2030, while carbon emissions are meant to be cut by 30% over the next decade, relative to 1990 levels.

As part of this transition, the Polish government intends to have six operational nuclear blocks by 2040. The first power plant’s construction is supposed to start on 2026 and to be effective in 2033 said Poland’s climate minister.

The aim of this transition toward nuclear power is not only to “accelerate carbon emissions reduction”, but also to help Poland to ensure energy security by reducing reliance on hydrocarbon imports, which include notable amounts of Russian coal and gas.

The cost of the reactors are expected to amount more than PLN 100 billion (EUR 22.5 billion).

Source: notesfrompoland.com

16.06.2020

The Minister of Infrastructure has approved the implementation of 11 investment programs which will be implemented on national roads. The total cost of these projects exceeds PLN 439 million, the ministry of infrastructure said in a statement.
It was added that the investments are linked, to the extension of road sections and the reinforcement of their pavement for the transport of loads of 11.5 tonnes per axle, to the improvement of the safety of the users of the road by reconstruction of intersections, construction of roads and traffic lights, construction of culverts and bridges on national roads.
The investments will be carried out in six voivodeships: Lubuskie, Dolnośląskie, Mazowieckie, Śląskie, Małopolskie and Podkarpackie.
The tasks approved for implementation include the construction of a roundabout at the intersection of national road No. 92 and a road in Trzciel, increasing the carrying capacity of the surface of national road n ° 27 on the Nowogród Bobrzański – Świdnica section, the construction of a new bridge in Międzylesie or the construction of a bridge over the Słony stream in the village Brzostek along the national road 73.

Source: WNP.pl 

14.05.2020

The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MSZ) has launched a portal that lists Polish companies offering products or solutions abroad to manage the coronavirus pandemic. The companies offer masks, medical equipment and even patient monitoring software.

To access the portal

14.05.2020

Amazon has just announced the creation of a new logistics center in Poland. Covering more than 210,000 square meters, the new infrastructure will be Amazon’s largest building on Polish territory, as well as on a European scale. Established in Poland since 2014, with a total of 7 logistics centers in the country, Amazon continues its presence on the territory with the creation of a new logistics center in the south of the country, in Gliwice.

“This year is crucial from the point of view of our operations in Poland – this month, we opened two new logistics centers – in Pawlikowice and Okmiany, and today we are officially announcing another investment, this time in Silesia [region where the city of Gliwice is located], “said Steven Harman, vice president of operations for Amazon in Europe, quoted in a press release published by ISBNews.

The warehouse will be equipped with Amazon Robotics technology, which allows the company to more quickly manage its storage and shipment processing spaces. Employees will be responsible for processing customer orders for small and medium-sized products, such as books or electronic equipment, the statement said.

“Poland was the first country in Europe where Amazon Robotics was introduced in September 2015. The implementation of this type of solution demonstrates our commitment to promote innovation in the field of logistics for the benefit of our employees and our customers, ”says Steven Harman.

The new facility, with an announced surface area of ​​more than 210,000 m2 spread over four levels, is expected to create 1,000 jobs, according to the American firm. Without giving further details on the opening date of this new logistics center, the company said it was entering its recruitment phase. The company is currently looking for engineers, computer scientists, HR specialists and operational managers to fill these new positions. Several advantages are promised to future employees. Including the guarantee of a “competitive salary” – no figures are given -, free transport to and from work or even life insurance.

“We are very pleased to be able to be part of the local Gliwice community and to provide local residents with not only new jobs, but also competitive wages, a full package of benefits and rich career opportunities in a business growing international market, “said Harman.

“The location of Amazon’s investment in Gliwice is proof of our province’s attractiveness to international companies. We try to take care of the infrastructure and the conditions that attract foreign investors, but also to create a climate of cooperation and dialogue on which relations with modern and responsible companies are based, “said Marshal of the Silesian province Jakub Chełstowski.

Source: Actualitte

14.05.2020

In addition to strengthening public investment in the infrastructure construction sector (the budget of the National Infrastructure Fund having increased by + 20% to € 4.2 billion), the Czech government has adopted the principle of financial compensation for companies that did not stop work during the state of emergency declared in the context of the Covid-19 crisis. The amounts invoiced will be increased by a lump sum of 10.2% for works on motorways and roads, by 7.2% for works on railways and by 11.1% for the construction of road bridges.

According to the Minister of Industry, Trade and Transport, this sector, which employs 360,000 workers and has 200,000 independent businesses and craftsmen, is becoming the main driver of the country’s economic recovery. The compensation measures will make it possible to continue construction of highways, rail and river corridors.

Source: Direction Générale du Trésor

14.05.2020

The public company Volanbusz has ordered 90 new generation electric buses, 30 being ordered by the group itself for around € 9 million, and 60 by Volan Buszpark, the subsidiary which manages the bus fleet, for around € 10 million. Volanbusz plans to renew 60% of its fleet of electric buses by 2022, as part of a government program to green the country’s buses.

Source : Direction Générale du Trésor

14.05.2020

MerchantPro, a Romanian online store developer, tripled the number of new online stores sold in April. In addition, the value of orders received by stores on its platform doubled in April compared to the same month last year and increased by 40% compared to March.

MerchantPro also hosts and manages the stores it develops on the basis of a SaaS e-commerce platform. The company has launched a special program, “Oxygen via Electronic Commerce”, to help retailers severely affected by COVID-19 restrictions to quickly set up fully functional online stores on its platform. Thus, the number of new accounts created to launch online stores increased by 300% in April. The most active retailers were in the food, clothing and beauty, sports, leisure, furniture, DIY and decoration segments.

MerchantPro has also recently launched features to support the vendors it hosts online stores on its platform, says Arthur Radulescu, founder of ShopMania Net, the company that manages MerchantPro. These include integration with eMAG Marketplace, a multi-warehouse interconnection and management solution, a multi-store synchronization and administration module and new automation for the creation of ‘Promotional offers..

Source: Romania Insider

14.05.2020

Poland was one of the first country in Europe who took pre-emptive measures to slow down the propagation of the Covid-19. You will find in this article, the measures taken by the polish government and the reasons why Poland could be resilient to this crisis.

January 2021

+ In this newsletter, a focus on the retail market in Poland

Newsletter Valians – November 2020

Newsletter Valians – September 2020

Newsletter Valians – July 2020

Newsletter Valians – May 2020

Newsletter Valians – March 2020

Newsletter Valians – January 2020

Newsletter Valians – November 2019

Newsletter Valians – September 2019

Newsletter Valians – July 2019

Newsletter Valians – May 2019

Newsletter Valians – March 2019

Newsletter Valians – January 2019

Validate your projects with one of our experts during one of our next visits to France and Belgium:

• From the 6th to the 23th of March 2020

• From the 7th to the 20th of April 2020

valians@valians-international.com

VALIANS’ team wishes you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2020

Valians International will be at the Europe’s leading event to expand your business overseas : GOING GLOBAL, 27&28 NOV. 2019, EXCEL, LONDON, STAND 382. Contact us for a meeting with our experts to expand your business in Eastern Europe.

Cédric Fromont, Managing partner of Valians International got the renewal of his accreditation as Specialist in Foreign Trade by AWEX. Validate your project in Poland by contacting : valians@valians-international.com

VALIANS INTERNATIONAL is proud to have its new Leaflet for 2019 !

VALIANS’ team wishes you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2019 !

VALIANS INTERNATIONAL was present at the International Week of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Nantes St-Nazaire. Our director, Maryline Bertheau-Sobczyk, met with entrepreneurs to discuss about the multiple opportunities that Polish market has to offer.

With an important growth on railway industry, the CEE offer wide business opportunities for foreign companies. Schedule a meeting and validate your projects with our expert during MEDICA: Alexandre Souvannavong, asouvannavong@valians-international.com

Alexandre Souvannavong, Valians’s expert has presented business opportunities offered by Central and Eastern Europe for French entreprises  during a conference organized by the regional Chamber of commerce PACA.

Meet us at the Wallonia Export days on the 4th and 5th of June 2018 in Louvain-la-Neuve to discuss about your projects in Eastern Europe.

VALIANS INTERNATIONAL accompanied a delegation of 6 tunisian companies in textile sector. More than 50 B2B meetings has been organized with the main polish decision-makers.

Cédric FROMONT, co-founder of VALIANS International presents the encouraging economic growth in Central Europe in the magazine Classe Export of Jan-Feb 2018. (article in French)

VALIANS’ team wishes you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2018

With a growing demand on medical equipment, the region offers wide business opportunities for foreign companies.         Schedule a meeting and validate your projects with our expert during MEDICA: Alexandre Souvannavong, asouvannavong@valians-international.com

After years of inactivity, the Honorary Consulate of Belgium in Krakow will reopen its doors under the supervision of M. Philippe De Brouwer, new honorary Consul. The consulate will be based at Valians’ offices in Cracow and will have many aspects to support Belgian citizens and businesses.

Together with Enterprise Mauritius, (the National Export Promotion Agency of Mauritius) a delegation of 10 mauritian companies came in Poland to meet with potential buyers. For this occasion VALIANS has organized around 75 B2B meeting in textile, food and rum industries during 2 days.

Alexandre Souvannavong, Valians’s expert has presented business opportunities offered by Central and Eastern Europe for French entreprises during a conference organized by the General Confederation of Small and Medium-sized enterprises (CGPME).

Cedric FROMONT, the associate director and co-founder of VALIANS International, presented with specific examples the key to successful development in Eastern Europe.

Maryline BERTHEAU-SOBCZYK, CEO of  Valians International, has been interwied together with a panel of experts to present the economical and culural situation of Poland, and its growing place on the international scene.

Magazine dedicated to the international business news. Cédric FROMONT, vice president and co-founder of VALIANS International, presents the current situation and the potential of the research and innovating sectors in Poland.

Magazine dedicated to business and management based on young CEOs’ analyses and points of view. Cédric FROMONT, representative of Poland for the CJD (the Young Business Leaders Organization), shares his analysis of the recent economic and social changes in Poland.

Magazine dedicated to international business in which the French Foreign Trade Advisors share their analyses and their experiences on the markets. Maryline BERTHEAU-SOBCZYK, CEO of VALIANS International presents her own analysis of the economic situation in Poland.

As an expert on Poland, VALIANS met many company directors in order to assist them in their projects in Poland. Nicole Bricq, as the former Minister of the French Foreign Trade, also participated in these meetings with Maryline BERTHEAU-SOBCZYK.

Magazine dedicated to the international business news. Maryline BERTHEAU-SOBCZYK, CEO and co-founder of VALIANS International presents Poland’s economic outlook for the year 2014.