Empik
Retailer / private label
UnclaimedPolish omnichannel retailer and cultural-entertainment platform offering books, media, lifestyle products, digital content and event tickets.
Last updated August 21, 2026
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Overview
Empik is a Polish retail chain, e-commerce platform and marketplace focused on culture, entertainment, leisure and selected lifestyle categories. Its name derives from KMPiK, the abbreviation for Klub Międzynarodowej Prasy i Książki, or International Press and Book Club, a nationwide network of cultural centres and bookstores created in 1948 by the Main Board of the Workers’ Publishing Cooperative Prasa. The modern Empik company was established in 1991 during Poland’s post-communist economic transformation. Jacek Dębski represented RSW Prasa-Książka-Ruch, which contributed 74 KMPiK outlets, while businessman Janusz Romanowski and Ronny Bruckner were also involved in the company’s creation. In 1994, Empik was acquired from the State Treasury by Eastbridge N.V., a Netherlands-based investment company. Empik developed from a traditional bookstore and press-club network into a broad cultural and entertainment retailer. Its core assortment includes books, music, films, games, stationery and other media products, but the business has expanded into electronics, toys, cosmetics, health and beauty, sports goods, home products and other lifestyle categories. Empik also sells tickets for cultural and entertainment events and operates digital services including audiobooks, e-books, podcasts and original audio productions. The group’s related companies and brands include Empik Foto, Empik Go, Going., Empik Bilety, Grupa Wydawnicza Foksal, Platon, e-muzyka and Jazzboy Records. The company’s current model combines physical stores, Empik.com, third-party marketplace sellers, mobile commerce, loyalty services and digital subscriptions. Empik.com combines Empik’s own inventory with marketplace offers from external sellers. The marketplace launched in April 2017 and, according to the supplied reference material, had more than 30,000 registered sellers and over 20 million listed products by 2025. Physical stores function both as retail locations and as collection points for online orders; almost two-thirds of online orders in Empik’s own channel were collected in stores in 2025. Empik’s mobile application supports shopping, customer engagement and the Empik Premium loyalty programme. The programme, developed from an earlier loyalty scheme, offers benefits such as delivery advantages, discounts, store-pick-up benefits and partner promotions. Empik Go, launched in 2017, extends the brand into digital reading and listening, with audiobooks, e-books, podcasts and original audio content. The group also introduced GoBook e-readers, including the first Empik GoBook in 2021 and the Empik GoBook 2.0, developed with PocketBook, in 2023. Empik retains a visible cultural role in Poland through author meetings, premieres, music and literary events, and its annual Bestsellery Empiku awards. The awards began in 1999 as Asy Empiku and adopted the Bestsellery Empiku name in 2008. They recognise commercially successful books, albums, films and audio productions using sales across Empik’s physical and digital channels. The chain’s locations also have architectural and historical significance, including a Kraków store at Rynek Główny 23 and a flagship Warsaw store opened in December 2024 in the revitalised former Cepelia pavilion. The reference material reports that the Empik Group operated 386 physical stores and served approximately 12 million customers in 2025. Group gross merchandise value was nearly PLN 4.9 billion, with online channels representing 56% of GMV; reported group revenue was PLN 3.44 billion for the same year. These figures are group-level measures and should not be confused with a separately reported public-company market valuation. Empik remains an active Polish omnichannel retailer whose strategic direction centres on combining cultural authority, physical retail, marketplace scale and digital content services.
History
Empik’s institutional predecessor was created in 1948, when the Main Board of the Workers’ Publishing Cooperative Prasa established a nationwide network of cultural centres and bookstores called Klub Międzynarodowej Prasy i Książki, abbreviated KMPiK. These venues combined press, books, cultural programming and public access to international media. The network became an important part of Poland’s urban cultural infrastructure. The Empik company emerged in 1991 as Poland moved from a state-socialist economy toward private enterprise. Jacek Dębski, acting for RSW Prasa-Książka-Ruch, worked with Janusz Romanowski and Ronny Bruckner to establish the business. RSW contributed 74 existing KMPiK outlets, giving the new company a ready-made national footprint. In 1994, Empik sp. z o.o. was purchased from the State Treasury by Eastbridge N.V., a Netherlands-based company. Eastbridge later controlled Empik through the wider NFI Empik Media & Fashion group, which also had interests in a range of fashion, beauty and specialty retail brands in Poland. During the 1990s and 2000s, Empik broadened its assortment beyond newspapers and books. Its multimedia departments sold music, films, games and related products; some locations also included internet cafés and paid computer-game access. Perfume departments existed in some Empik stores during the group’s earlier development, although perfume retail later became associated mainly with separate specialist shops operating in the same shopping centres. The company increasingly positioned its stores as places where customers could discover popular culture as well as purchase products. The group continued to evolve under dedicated management. Olaf Szymanowski became president in 2012, followed by Ewa Szmidt in February 2015. Empik began developing its mobile application in 2015 and introduced a loyalty programme in 2016, which operated under the Empik Premium name from 2019. This helped connect the store network, e-commerce channel, customer data and promotional benefits. Empik.com became more important as the business moved toward an omnichannel model. In April 2017, the company launched a marketplace that allowed external sellers to offer products alongside Empik’s own inventory. In the same year, Empik launched Empik Go, a digital platform for audiobooks and e-books that later expanded into podcasts and original audio dramas. The group also developed adjacent businesses in photo personalisation, ticketing, publishing, music distribution and wholesale. These activities included Empik Foto, Empik Bilety, Going., Grupa Wydawnicza Foksal, Platon, e-muzyka and Jazzboy Records. The company continued opening stores even during the COVID-19-era retail disruption. By January 2021 it reported 289 stores in Poland and described further expansion as part of its omnichannel strategy. Stores served not only as shopping destinations but also as collection points for online orders. Empik later expanded its digital-reading hardware with the Empik GoBook in 2021 and the GoBook 2.0, developed with PocketBook, in 2023. Empik has also invested in cultural visibility. It operates author meetings, premieres and other events in stores and online, while its Bestsellery Empiku awards have recognised popular books, albums, films and audio works since 1999. In 2019, it opened a Kraków store at a location with a bookstore history reaching back to the early seventeenth century. In December 2024, it opened a flagship Warsaw store in the restored former Cepelia pavilion. By 2025, the group reported 386 physical stores, approximately 12 million customers and nearly PLN 4.9 billion in GMV. Its online channel represented 56% of GMV, confirming the transformation from a bookstore-centred chain into a broad omnichannel marketplace and digital-content group.
- 2025
Group reaches 386 stores
[1]The group reports 386 physical stores, approximately 12 million customers and nearly PLN 4.9 billion in GMV.
- 2024
Warsaw flagship store opens
[1]Empik opens a flagship store in the renovated former Cepelia pavilion in central Warsaw.
- 2023
GoBook 2.0 is presented
[1]Empik presents the GoBook 2.0 e-reader developed in cooperation with PocketBook.
- 2021
Empik GoBook is introduced
[1]Empik introduces its first Empik GoBook e-reader.
- 2019
Empik Premium becomes an established loyalty service
[1]The loyalty proposition operates under the Empik Premium name and connects shopping benefits across stores and digital channels.
- 2017
Empik.com marketplace and Empik Go launch
[1]Empik launches its third-party marketplace and the Empik Go digital reading and listening platform.
- 2015
Empik develops its mobile application
[1]The company develops its mobile application as a shopping, customer-service and loyalty channel.
- 2008
Awards adopt the Bestsellery Empiku name
[1]The annual Empik awards, originally known as Asy Empiku, become Bestsellery Empiku.
- 1999
Empik launches its annual sales awards
[1]Empik begins awarding prizes for bestselling books, albums, films and audio productions.
- 1994
Eastbridge acquires Empik
[1]Eastbridge N.V. acquires Empik sp. z o.o. from the State Treasury.
Products and positioning
A Polish cultural and entertainment destination combining bookstore heritage with omnichannel retail, marketplace commerce, digital content, lifestyle products and live-event ticketing.
Physical retail · 1991
Empik stores
Empik’s stores sell books, music, films, games, stationery and a growing range of lifestyle products. They also host cultural activities and operate as collection points for online orders, making the physical network a central part of the company’s omnichannel model.
E-commerce and marketplace
Empik.com
Empik.com combines Empik’s own retail offer with listings from external marketplace sellers. The platform extends the assortment beyond traditional cultural products into electronics, health and beauty, toys, sports, home goods and other categories.
Digital content · 2017
Empik Go
Empik Go is a subscription-oriented digital platform offering audiobooks, e-books, podcasts and original audio dramas. It also supports Empik’s wider digital-content strategy and has developed proprietary e-readers under the GoBook name.
Loyalty programme · 2019
Empik Premium
Empik Premium links physical and digital shopping with benefits such as delivery offers, discounts on books, store collection advantages and partner promotions. The programme is integrated with the Empik mobile application.
Photo services
Empik Foto
Empik Foto provides photo-related services and personalised products, extending the group beyond retail into customised print and gift offerings.
Ticketing
Empik Bilety and Going.
Empik Bilety and Going. operate in cultural and entertainment ticket sales, complementing Empik’s role as a destination for books, music, films and live experiences.
E-readers · 2021
GoBook
GoBook is Empik’s e-reader line associated with Empik Go. The first model appeared in 2021, followed by GoBook 2.0 in 2023, developed with PocketBook.
Marketing campaigns
- 20262025 Bestsellery Empiku gala
Poland
The edition covering 2025 sales was held on 24 February 2026 and recognised successful books, music, films and audio productions.
Outcome. The event was broadcast by TVN and covered by Polish media.
- 2008Bestsellery Empiku
Poland
The renamed awards programme became a recurring national cultural and entertainment event, with winners selected in part through Empik sales data.
Outcome. The gala remains an annual media-covered programme.
- 1999Asy Empiku
Poland
Empik introduced annual awards based on the popularity of books, albums, films and audio productions sold through its channels.
Outcome. The awards continued and were renamed Bestsellery Empiku in 2008.
Brand decisions
2024
Opening of the Warsaw flagship storeStrategyBackground
Empik aimed to preserve a prominent physical presence while modernising its retail format.
Action taken
The group renovated and opened a flagship store in the former Cepelia pavilion in central Warsaw.
Aftermath
The restored modernist building became a prominent physical expression of the Empik brand.
2023
Introduction of GoBook 2.0Product launchBackground
Empik sought to connect its digital-content subscription with dedicated reading hardware.
Action taken
The company presented GoBook 2.0, developed with PocketBook.
Aftermath
The device strengthened the hardware component of the Empik Go ecosystem.
2017
Launch of the Empik.com marketplaceStrategyBackground
Empik sought to expand beyond inventory owned and sold directly by the retail chain.
Action taken
The company introduced a marketplace model allowing external sellers to list products on Empik.com.
Aftermath
The marketplace became a major part of Empik’s assortment and later exceeded PLN 1 billion in annual GMV, according to the supplied 2025 reference material.
Marketplace GMV. More than PLN 1 billion (2025)
2017
Launch of Empik GoProduct launchBackground
Empik identified digital reading and listening as a way to extend its cultural-retail proposition.
Action taken
The group launched Empik Go with audiobooks and e-books, later adding podcasts and original audio productions.
Aftermath
The service became one of the group’s main digital-content businesses.
Recent events
Sources2 sources
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