Polish retail chain Pepco has officially announced its entry into the Ukrainian market — Ukraine will become its 20th country of presence in Europe. The first few stores will open in the last quarter of 2026 as part of a pilot program, after which the company will decide on scaling. But ambitions have already been voiced: to become number one in the mass-market segment.
A late start with big ambitions
At the moment Pepco enters the market, other Polish players already dominate. According to LIGA.net, the LPP group (brands Sinsay, Reserved, House, Cropp and Mohito) has over 500 stores in Ukraine. Modivo group (CCC, Half Price, Worldbox) has over 30 locations but plans to grow them to 100 by 2026. Pepco is entering last — but with no intention to remain third.
«If our competitors have such big ambitions, we must have even bigger ones».
Marcin Stanko, Pepco's operations director for Central and Eastern Europe, in an interview with LIGA.net
When asked if Pepco could open 100 stores per year in Ukraine — as LPP has done — Stanko answered unequivocally: «Of course we can». For comparison, he cited Poland, where Pepco has over 1,400 locations compared to ~600 for Sinsay, and Romania — 530 compared to 250. In every market where Pepco operates, it is the largest player. Ukraine, by his logic, should be no exception.
Why now — and what's behind it
The decision appears paradoxical only at first glance. According to a Deloitte Ukraine study, in 2025 Ukrainians spent only 5% of their monthly budget on clothing and footwear — half of what they would like to. It is this pent-up demand that discounters are counting on: in times when people save money, cheap mass-market wins.
Pepco Group, meanwhile, is showing strong results: according to preliminary data for the 2025 financial year, the group's revenue grew 8.7% to €4.523 billion, net profit — by 19.7%, to €219 million. Group CEO Stefan Borchert called Ukraine «a market that could potentially become a significant new source of growth for the group».
Logistics under shelling: lessons from competitors
One of the key risks is infrastructure security. Russia systematically attacks logistics facilities: LPP warehouses in Ukraine have already been hit. Pepco chose a different model: during the pilot period, goods will be supplied through cross-border logistics from the largest stores of the network in Hungary, near Budapest.
«We know about the situation with warehouses of our competitors and want to avoid similar situations».
Marcin Stanko, LIGA.net
The first stores will open in major cities — Kyiv and Lviv. Store size: from 450 to 700 m². According to Andrii Lototskyi, CEO of the Retail & Development Advisor (RDA) consulting company — Pepco's official representative in Ukraine — negotiations with shopping and entertainment centers are already underway.
Polish monopoly in mass-market
Pepco's entry completes the formation of Polish dominance in the Ukrainian fashion segment. Before the full-scale invasion, the market was led by brands of Spanish Inditex (Zara, Bershka, Pull&Bear). After 2022, the Spanish left — the Poles remained and expanded. Now LPP, Modivo and Pepco will together form the main competitive axis of mass clothing and home goods in the country.
- LPP Ukraine — over 500 stores, market leader as of 2026
- Modivo (CCC Group) — over 30 stores, plan to reach 100 by 2026
- Pepco — launch in October 2026, 5–10 pilot stores, goal — #1
If Pepco repeats its Romanian scenario — where in a few years it doubled Sinsay in store count — then the question is not whether the chain will become a leader, but how many years it will take LPP to stop it. The answer depends on one thing: whether Ukrainian logistics can sustain the pace of opening 100 stores per year amid active military operations.
