Private label on the rise: Marca Poland strengthens the dialogue between industry and retail in central and eastern Europe
The second edition of MARCA Poland confirmed the event's growing importance as an international platform for the private label sector in Central and Eastern Europe. The trade fair brought together 100 exhibitors, 800 professional visitors, and 50 international buyers from 18 countries, creating an environment for intensive business meetings and the exchange of experiences between producers and retailers. The event also showcased the dynamic development of the private label market in Poland, which – with the growing importance of quality and value for consumers – is strengthening its position as one of the key FMCG segments in the region.
The Marca Poland project was created through a collaboration between the BolognaFiere Group and Grupa MTP – a leading trade fair organizer in Poland. The second edition of MARCA Poland took place on 21–22 April 2026 at the Poznań Congress Center, further strengthening its position as an international platform dedicated to private label brands in Central and Eastern Europe.
The event brought together 100 exhibitors and 800 professional visitors, including 50 international buyers from 18 countries, carefully selected to enable targeted meetings and real business opportunities between manufacturers and retail. The fair gathered producers, retailers, and buyers in a single integrated space, combining product presentations, business dialogue, and insights into current market trends.
Market in transformation
According to an analysis conducted by Circana for MARCA Poland, the Polish private label market is at a turning point. With a share of approximately 23.5% of household FMCG spending and annual growth of +6.6%, the sector still holds significant development potential – especially compared to the European average of 42%.
The study shows that Poland is a highly relevant market for this category: quality, value, and health act as complementary factors influencing purchasing decisions, creating favorable conditions for further private label growth. The key takeaway is the increasing consumer awareness – the choice of private label products is no longer driven solely by price, but increasingly by quality (49%) and health and well-being aspects (35%), indicating a gradual convergence with more mature European markets.
Business Value and a retail-focused format
One of the key features of the event is its retail-focused format, developed in Bologna, where the largest retail chains participate not only as visitors but also as active participants and exhibitors. This model has also been successfully adapted in Poznań, with the support of POHiD and the participation of Lidl Polska as a partner with its own exhibition space.
The format of Marca Poland was designed to comprehensively cover the entire supply chain – both in the food and non-food sectors. Thanks to cooperation with ITA – Italian Trade Agency, the event was enriched with a program for key buyers, which effectively connected carefully selected representatives of retail chains and distribution organizations with exhibitors, enabling an intensive and valuable program of business meetings.
Another important element of the event was the Marca Awards – Best Innovation Product exhibition, showcasing over 300 new product submissions and the 15 finalists recognized during the last edition of MARCA by BolognaFiere & ADM in Italy. The selection emphasized the highest standards in key areas such as sustainability, health-promoting and functional product features – both food and non-food – supply chain transparency, and technological innovation.
“Central and Eastern Europe is today one of the most compelling areas for Private Label development", said Rossano Bozzi, Business Unit Director at BolognaFiere. "In this context, MARCA Poland was conceived with the ambition of becoming a reference point for connecting supply and demand at an international level. Just as Bologna has progressively built its positioning to become a European benchmark, we are now in a development phase and will continue working to gradually strengthen the event's role, expanding business opportunities for all stakeholders involved”
“Marca Poland is an excellent project that demonstrates the strong position private labels currently hold”, said Filip Bittner, Vice President at Grupa MTP. “In Poland, they already constitute a quarter of the FMCG market, but we are still striving to reach European levels, where the share is close to 40%. Marca Poland’s mission is to support this evolution. The success of this year’s edition is due not only to 100 exhibitors, but above all to the high business quality of the meetings. The doubling of the number of buyers, including the significant participation of foreign retail chains thanks to the Hosted Buyers programme, demonstrates the fair’s real impact on the development of exports and the Polish economy. Together with our Italian partners from the BolognaFiere Group and the Italian Trade Agency, we are creating a space that truly supports the development of the private label market.”
The conference program further enhanced the event's value by offering an in-depth analysis of the development of private labels in Europe, presenting trends, strategies, and concrete success stories. Alex Chiesa (Circana) discussed the performance of the private label segment in global and European markets, highlighting growth drivers and their growing role in the FMCG sector. Particular attention was paid to Poland and Romania – two dynamically developing markets – analyzing their competitive position and future opportunities for retailers and manufacturers.
The topic of innovation and brand building in the private label space was presented by Stefano Ghetti and Paolo Palomba (Expertise On Field – IPLC Partner), who presented best practices from Europe. It was emphasized that growing competition between retail chains is accelerating the transformation of retailers into full-fledged brand owners. Quality, sustainability, and brand equity are becoming key factors in competing with even the largest manufacturer brands.