Introduction
Until a few years ago, no one could imagine e-commerce in Poland without Allegro. It was the obvious first destination - whether you were buying a book, a blender or a charger cable. Allegro was the hegemon. The reference point.
And today? More and more often I hear from vendors the phrase "it used to pay off, and today... it's different".
And there's something about that.
The three pillars of Allegro
Selling on Allegro is based on a simple system:
- Customers - accustomed, loyal, trusting the platform.
- The regulator - Allegro itself, which keeps an eye on rules, security, protection programs.
- Sellers - those who provide products and services using the power of Allegro's reach.
As long as all three pillars work - everyone gains something. Allegro has commission, customers have choice and certainty, sellers have sales. Win-win-win.
But all it takes is for one component to start cracking... and the whole structure crackles.
Competition is not sleeping
There is no vacuum in the market. InPost is opening a marketplace and wants to conquer the mobile market. Media Expert is also trying. Temu is reigning in coverage and building awareness in Poland for the next few months.
And the customers? The customers are not growing. There are a finite number of them, and each new player takes a piece of the Allegro pie.
This is already evident - in conversations among vendors, on forums and groups. Sales declines are becoming more painful.
Allegro has chosen fortification
And here we come to the most interesting thing. Allegro could have fought with quality, lower costs, better offers. But instead - it bet on a strategy of "building walls."
- API restrictions (under threat of penalties),
- Imposing forms of delivery,
- Rising costs of handling sales.
Vendors pay more, customers have less flexibility, and prices start to look less attractive than on competing platforms.
On top of that - for years Chinese companies flooded Allegro with products and then it was "ok". But when the burden shifted to Temu, suddenly there were calls for the European Union to react. A bit ironic, isn't it?
The vicious circle
Retailers have more and more alternatives: Amazon, Kaufland, eMag and even the growing Bol. In parallel, cross-border sales are going from strength to strength.
If the trend continues, we are in danger of a vicious cycle:
- Fewer vendors → higher prices → fewer customers → even fewer vendors.
This is a road to nowhere.
What's next?
Does this mean that Allegro is ending? No. It continues to have a huge customer base and the highest average time spent on the platform. It is still the place where Poles make their purchasing decisions.
But if the company doesn't change course, doesn't start seriously competing on quality and terms for vendors - its dominance could eventually crumble.
Therefore, if you are a seller - this may be the last call to think about diversification. Because today relying solely on one channel is akin to balancing on a thin rope. All it takes is one gust of wind to fall.
