Over the past few years, parcel machines (also called parcel lockers) have become a familiar place on the Polish landscape and an important element in the parcel and e-commerce markets. They enable convenient collection and sending of parcels 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

What is the current state of the parcel machines market in Poland, and how will it develop in the future?

Parcel machines boom in Poland

According to Colliers, Poland has the largest worldwide number of automated parcel machines (APMs) per 100,000 inhabitants. At the end of 2021, there were about 18,000 parcel machines in Poland, of which 16,000 belonged to InPost. It is estimated that by the end of 2022, the number of devices will exceed 25,000. As many as 97% of Colliers surveyed admit that they use parcel machines, and 85% do it often and regularly.

The largest players on the parcel machines market in Poland

The leaders of the Polish automated parcel machines market are:

• InPost,
• Polish Post,
• DPD,
• Allegro,
• Orlen (formerly Ruch).

Despite the undeniable quantitative advantage of InPost parcel machines, lockers from other companies are becoming more and more noticeable on the Polish market. The courier companies DPD and DHL already have their own devices. In 2021, Allegro, Orlen, and even the owner of the Chinese sales websites AliExpress, Alibaba, also invested a stake in developing the parcel machine network in Poland. Poczta Polska plans to install 2,000 new devices by 2022.

InPost – the leader of the Polish parcel machines market

InPost is a leader in the market of parcels delivered to parcel machines and collection points. According to Dataplace.Ai, in 2021, InPost had 45% of all collection points in Poland. This analysis included parcel machines and service points such as shops where parcel collection is only a side activity. According to the same research, the InPost network has over 16.4 million potential customers throughout Poland. These people have less than 10 minutes of walk to the nearest parcel locker.

This company introduced automated parcel machines to Poland in 2009. InPost also has a protection right for the Paczkomat trademark. It means that it is the only one who has the right to use this name concerning its machines for sending and receiving parcels.

In addition to operating the network of parcel lockers in Poland, InPost also produces parcel machines for export. The company operates under its name in Great Britain and Italy. In addition, it provides devices to postal operators in France, the Netherlands, and Australia.

Development prospects for the parcel machines market in Poland

According to the research conducted so far, the use of parcel machines is in line with ecological trends. One of the reasons is to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and reduce fuel consumption by having multiple parcels delivered to one place. In addition, customers most often pick up parcels on the way to work or store, which also reduces car traffic.

To further develop ecologically, InPost installed the first parcel locker powered by energy from photovoltaic panels in 2021. It is an element of the „Green City” program, which has been joined, among others, by Kraków, Kielce and Łódź. Therefore, it can be expected that more similar devices will appear in Poland. Allegro also focuses on ecology. Their parcel machines will be powered by energy from renewable sources and have air quality sensors. Additionally, some of the devices will be covered with a green wall of plants.

Deliveries to parcel machines already account for almost 40% of all deliveries in Poland, and by 2024 this number will be equal to the market share for home deliveries. It is worth noting that at the same time – according to the Dataplace.ai analysis – almost 15.7 million people in Poland have more than 10 minutes of walk to the nearest parcel collection point or a parcel machine of any company. It means that there is still room for development and new devices and collection points in Poland.