"This is a significant step in the Group's history, dictated by our strategic objective to invest in the development of Marketplace. Finland is one of the biggest e-commerce markets and opening it up to Baltic sellers is a huge opportunity for all our sellers. Soon it will be as easy to sell and deliver your goods through our Marketplace in any Finnish city as it is in Vilnius or Panevėžys, Riga or Tallinn", says Florin Filote, CEO of PHH Group and Pigu.lt.

According to him, it is particularly convenient for sellers that although the marketplace operates under different names - "Pigu.lt" in Lithuania, "220.lv" in Latvia, "Kaup24.ee" in Estonia, and "HobbyHall.fi" in Finland - the sellers need only one account to sell in all 4 markets with more than 11 million inhabitants. The new marketplace's territory of operation, Finland, has a population of 5.5 million and is expected to have around 4 million e-shoppers by 2027.

According to Raimondas Žilėnas, Head of Marketplace at PHH Group, „one of the company's main goals is to ensure the stable operation of the marketplace from the very first minutes of its launch in Finland and to ensure its sustainable development. Therefore, sellers will be connected to the new marketplace gradually.“

"First of all, we will connect those sellers who already have experience of selling on our Marketplace: they are familiar with the sales processes, they understand the system and, of course, they are ready to sell in Finland - have quality product descriptions, translations, photos", says Žilėnas.

Raimondas Žilėnas

He points out that the Finnish market is very specific and buyers are very demanding. "Detailed product descriptions, especially technical parameters and specifications, are very important to buyers, as well as keeping promises - sellers have to keep all their promises, both in terms of delivery times and quality," says Žilėnas.

In this country, goods that do not meet customers’ expectations are returned quickly. "Finns are wealthy, curious, technology-consuming and quality-conscious northern Europeans who are more likely to choose premium goods than the rest of Europe," says Žilėnas.

According to him, the Fulfillment by Pigu service will enable Baltic sellers to ensure smooth logistics and fast delivery. "We will offer this service to all retailers from our launch in Finland to ensure competitive advantage and sales growth," says Žilėnas. Retailers selling in Finland will also have access to the self-service advertising platform "Martailer".

Hobby Hall, a Finnish company that has been operating since 1962, started out as a telephone ordering company selling fitness equipment and leisure products. The company, which is being transformed from an e-shop to a marketplace, has been trading online for 23 years.

Pigu.lt is owned by PHH Group, the largest e-commerce company in the Baltic States. It was formed after the merger of Pigu.lt with Finnish company Hobby Hall. PHH Group operates e-shops and physical shops in Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The Group's Marketplace has more than 4,000 sellers and a product range of more than 3 million products. The number of sessions per year is around 150 million.