Tuesday, 22 September 2026
Polish retail sales continued to expand in August, providing a positive signal for the country’s consumer economy and retail property sector. Sales measured at constant prices increased by 3.8% year-on-year, compared with annual growth of 3.1% in August 2025. Compared with July, however, sales slipped by 0.3%. Across the first eight months of 2026, volumes were 3.4% higher than during the same period last year.
The underlying monthly picture was somewhat stronger after seasonal effects were removed. Adjusted retail volumes increased by 4.6% compared with August 2025 and by 1.0% from July, indicating that consumer demand remained relatively resilient towards the end of the summer.
Some of the strongest growth came from categories important to shopping centres, retail parks and large-format stores. Sales of motor vehicles, motorcycles and parts increased by 11.7% year-on-year, while furniture, electronics and household appliances advanced by 10.6%. Pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and orthopaedic products recorded growth of 6.2%, while food, beverages and tobacco increased by a more modest 1.0%. Clothing and footwear was the main category to move in the opposite direction, with sales volumes falling by 2.7%.
Digital retail expanded considerably faster than overall store sales. The value of purchases made online was 17.5% higher than a year earlier, lifting e-commerce’s share of total retail sales from 8.1% to 9.0%. Online penetration increased particularly strongly among specialist book retailers and sellers of furniture, electronics and household appliances. Clothing and footwear remained one of the categories with the highest proportion of purchases made online, despite the decline in its overall sales volumes.
The figures indicate that Poland’s retail market continues to benefit from growing consumer expenditure, although performance differs substantially between categories. Strong demand for vehicles and household-related goods provides support for retail parks and destination formats, while the rapid expansion of online sales reinforces the importance of omnichannel strategies and the logistics networks supporting retailers.
For property owners and developers, the combination of rising overall sales and faster digital growth points towards a retail market in which physical and online channels are developing simultaneously rather than one simply replacing the other. Consumer demand remains supportive of physical retail, but changing purchasing patterns are likely to continue influencing tenant strategies, store formats and demand for distribution infrastructure.
