Location factors of e-commerce distribution centers in Zachodniopomorskie Vivodeship based on the example of a selected company

Abstract

The issue of enterprise location is one of the fundamental economic question. The problem is frequently undertaken in economists’ research, especially in the context of industry and agriculture location, but there still remain numerous queries related to motives underlying location selection by entities operating in other sectors. Whereas factors underlying location of industry have been analyzed thoroughly and discussed in the literature, there still remains a lot to explore regarding factors underlying location of services. The purpose of the study was to identify factors which influenced adoption of location decision as well as comparison between Polish voivodeships in terms of elements playing a role in the decision making process related to location of an e-commerce distribution center. The analysis was based on the literature review. Moreover, the studies involved the in-depth interview technique and direct questionnaire interview. The research covered an enterprise with a foreign capital shareholding, whose business is connected with online sales. In the survey, representatives of the company’s management performed a quantitative evaluation of the location factors in three Western Poland voivodeships which were taken into consideration as the location for the distribution center. Finally, the investment was located in Zachodniopomorskie voivodeship, and the analysis performed allowed identification of the factors which influenced the location decision adopted. Results of the analysis suggest that availability of workforce, technical infrastructure and cooperation with local administration representatives were of highest importance from the point of view of e-commerce center location.