Ukrposhta: war is changing shopping habits
Ukrposhta, together with Kasta, has launched Ukrposhta Market – a new way to shop for everyday essentials directly in the Ukrposhta 2.0 app, with free delivery to any Ukrposhta post office across Ukraine.
What’s Available?
Food and beverages, household essentials, personal care products, children’s items, and pet supplies — 10 million products from Kasta sellers. Simply choose what you need, pay online, and pick up your order at a Ukrposhta post office.
Why Another Marketplace?
Because war is changing shopping habits. In September, air raid alerts accounted for 30.8% of shopping malls’ operating hours. As a result, more and more people are turning to online shopping even for everyday necessities — groceries, batteries, and household cleaning products.
However, online shopping comes with its own frustrations: a shopping cart worth UAH 200 and a delivery fee of UAH 80. So, people either postpone their purchases or wait until they have enough items in their cart to justify the delivery cost.
Ukrposhta Market removes this barrier. Need something? Order it right away — without waiting for a special occasion or having to spend a large amount.
“We’re not competing with other marketplaces. Our main competition is the barriers that prevent people from buying even the most essential things today,” says Igor Smelyansky, CEO of Ukrposhta.
Whose Responsibility and for What?
Kasta provides the technology, sellers, and product assortment. Ukrposhta handles free delivery to post offices across the country — from central Kyiv to frontline villages.
Sellers keep their products in their own warehouses. There are hundreds, even thousands, of these warehouses, making the system resilient: a single drone cannot bring the entire operation to a halt.
What Does This Mean for Sellers?
Access to millions of Ukrposhta customers without having to build their own logistics infrastructure. Even a small manufacturer can sell products to any corner of the country without setting up its own delivery network.
For customers, this complex system remains remarkably simple: choose, pay, receive.
“Ukraine is the last major European country with such low e-commerce penetration. According to market data, e-commerce accounts for 10% of retail sales in Ukraine, compared with 22% in Poland, around 30% in the United States, and up to 35% in the United Kingdom. This is because online shopping remains inconvenient and expensive for millions of people outside major cities. Ukrposhta provides the infrastructure, affordable delivery, and trust, while Kasta brings the technology and expertise in building a marketplace and super app”, says Andrii Lohvin, CEO of Kasta.
What’s Next for the Platform?
For now, the main measure of Ukrposhta Market’s success is helping Ukrainians get through the winter as comfortably as possible, taking the circumstances.
Beyond that, the team will focus on customer needs. If there is demand for more affordable products, the assortment will expand. If customers need machinery, the platform could even add combine harvesters.
The team doesn’t want to make plans for years in advance. In such a rapidly changing environment, they believe it is more effective to listen to customers and respond to their immediate needs.
