For manufacturers
Enter Poland with a real-world partner.
Most market entries in this industry start with a price list and end in silence. We start by installing your product somewhere it will be used every day, and by finding out whether Polish operators actually want it.
Horeca Pilot is operated by TEL-SERVICE, a Polish technology and technical services business established in 1997. We run our own accommodation properties in Podhale, in southern Poland.
The usual route, and why it stalls
A manufacturer signs a distributor. The distributor adds the product to a catalogue of four hundred others. Nobody has ever used it, so nobody can answer the two questions a Polish buyer asks first: how does it behave after a season, and who fixes it when it fails.
The product does not fail on quality. It fails because there is no evidence, no reference, and nobody inside the market who has skin in the game.
A pilot in an operating property
Not a showroom corner. A room that is sold, a kitchen that serves, a laundry that runs every day.
Honest operational feedback
Consumption, service load, staff reaction, guest reaction, what broke and after how long.
A reference installation
A place in Poland where a prospective buyer can see your product installed and working.
Commercial development
Positioning for the Polish market, pricing reality, first B2B customers, then a distribution structure that has something to stand on.
Our test network
Where your product actually gets tried.
Four sites we operate ourselves and a partner network, all in Podhale, within a few kilometres of each other. These are not showrooms — they trade commercially every day.
- Sleep systems: beds, mattresses, toppers, linen
- Bathroom: tiles, sanitary ware, fittings, water saving
- Interior scenting and guest amenities
- Wellness and private SPA: sauna, hammam, minipool
- Smart hospitality: access control, automation
The bathroom area and the wellness zone are still under construction.
- Sleep products
- Scenting for small spaces
- Guest amenities
- Water saving
- Access control and automation
The format most Polish accommodation businesses actually have: no technical department, no night shift.
- Laundry: washers, dryers, mini laundry
- Automatic dosing and professional chemistry
- Housekeeping and work organisation
- Technical hotel equipment
Set up for demonstrations with regular access, not constrained by guests in the building. Equipment sourcing is under way.
- High-traffic food location in Zakopane — operated by us
- Partner bakery in the Podhale region
- Partner pizzeria in the Podhale region
- Mobile partner network
Partner sites are not owned by us; testing there takes place by arrangement with their owners.
- Independent hoteliers and property owners across Podhale
- Restaurateurs and food operators in the region
- Local technical contacts and installers
- Ninety minutes from Kraków airport
We do not test products in a showroom. We put them to work in real properties, and only then take them to market.
Why Poland
This is not a mature market with settled supplier relationships. For a manufacturer with a strong product, that is the interesting part.
- 01
Hotel stock built in the 2000s has reached its first serious refurbishment.
- 02
Domestic tourism carries the market, and what guests accept as standard rises every season.
- 03
Few dominant chains: independent owners decide quickly and buy on evidence rather than framework agreements.
- 04
Podhale has two full seasons, winter and summer, so a test cycle closes far faster.
How a market entry runs with us
Seven stages. Each one can end the process — that is what makes the outcome worth something.
- 01
Discover
We go through the product and work out which problem it solves. If we do not recognise that problem from our own operations, we say so immediately.
- 02
Evaluate
We assess the potential in Poland: competition already present, price position, service requirements.
- 03
Pilot
We choose the right site from our network and agree the scope and duration of the test. Staff and guests use the product without special treatment.
- 04
Validate
We collect operational data and direct feedback, and report it as it is, including the parts that are inconvenient.
- 05
Demonstrate
If the product holds up, it stays in place as a reference we can show to hoteliers, architects and investors.
- 06
Sell
Commercial materials in Polish, pricing, and the first B2B conversations — with a working example behind them.
- 07
Scale
Distribution, implementation, service and the recurring part of the business: consumables, spares, refills.
Who we work with best
Our model does not suit everyone, and we would rather say so at the start than after a quarter.
We are looking in particular for companies that…
- have an innovative product, or one that is clearly distinguishable from what is already here
- want to enter the Polish market, not just ship a few orders
- are open to a pilot in a real property
- can provide technical and commercial support
- are looking for a long-term partner
Our model is less suited to…
companies looking only for an importer for a single shipment, without a pilot phase and without market development.
Discuss Poland market entry
Discuss Poland market entry
Tell us what you make and where you already sell. If we do not see a route into the Polish market, we will say so — that answer is also useful.
We answer in Italian, Polish or English.