Which companies are looking for warehouse space near the German border today?
In the previous article in the series I showed how the strategic location of Świecko translates into a concrete project, Gateway A2. That left one question open: who actually rents these warehouses? Which companies are behind the growing demand for warehouse space in the Lubuskie region, and more broadly along the entire Polish-German border? I decided to look into this more closely, because understanding the tenant profile helps explain why this market is growing so quickly, and for whom a location like this makes the most sense.
German companies relocating production and storage to Poland
The largest and most characteristic group of tenants in the Lubuskie region today is German companies. This region stands out with one of the highest shares in Poland of build-to-suit projects, developments tailored to a specific tenant, and the large majority of them belong to German businesses. The reason is straightforward. These companies have recognized that moving production or storage to the Polish side of the border allows them to cut operating costs significantly, while staying close to the German market and their own plants. Rather than looking for space deep inside Poland, they prefer to stay as close to the border as possible, to keep transport times short and maintain a just-in-time model. If your company already ships from a German site, this is very likely the calculation your competitors have already made.
Automotive: component suppliers close to plants in Germany
The automotive sector is growing at a fast pace in the Lubuskie region. In Gorzów Wielkopolski, one of the region’s main industrial centers, tenants of warehouses and production halls include automotive component manufacturers, furniture producers and international logistics operators. For suppliers of car parts, proximity to German production plants is critical. In a just-in-time model, even a small delay in delivering a component can stop an assembly line, so a warehouse located tens of kilometers from the border, rather than hundreds, makes a real difference.
E-commerce: distribution centers closer to the end customer
Świebodzin, located at the junction of the A2 motorway and the S3 expressway, has become the site of a large e-commerce distribution center. This kind of location allows a company to serve customers in Poland and Germany simultaneously from a single site, without having to maintain separate warehouses on both sides of the border. For the e-commerce sector, where delivery time to the end customer is one of the key competitive factors, serving two markets from one location is a clear cost and operational advantage.
Third-party logistics operators serving multiple clients
In Zielona Góra, the warehouse market is dominated by large logistics centers operated by 3PL providers, companies that deliver logistics services to multiple clients at once. This model allows smaller and mid-sized companies to use professional warehouse and transport infrastructure without investing in their own facility. In practice, this means a single large warehouse can serve several unrelated tenants at the same time, which further increases how efficiently the available space in the region is used.
Manufacturers of furniture, metal, food and construction materials
In Nowa Sól, the warehouse landscape is dominated by large facilities built in the BTS and BTO model, meaning built directly to the specifications of a particular tenant. Companies using these facilities come from the construction, metal, automotive and food industries. This shows that demand for warehouse space near the German border is not limited to a single sector. What these companies have in common is rather the need for efficient access to the German market, regardless of whether they produce furniture, metal components or food products.
Why now
Several economic indicators explain why demand for warehouses in this region is rising right now. Industry accounts for about 33.4% of the gross domestic product of the Lubuskie region, noticeably higher than the national average. The unemployment rate in the region stood at 5.4% in October 2025, below the national average of 5.6%, which points to a relatively stable labor market for companies planning to hire staff for new facilities. On top of that comes the scale of trade ties with Germany: around 42% of Lubuskie’s exports go there, and around 38% of its imports come from Germany. These figures show that the region’s economy is already deeply integrated with the German market, and that new warehouse investment is a natural consequence of that relationship rather than a passing trend.
What this means for a location like Świecko
Looking at all these tenant profiles, a clear pattern emerges. Companies looking for space near the German border range from large manufacturers relocating entire production lines, to smaller tenants using 3PL operators, to e-commerce companies that need a single distribution center serving two markets at once. A location like Świecko, which I wrote about in earlier articles in this series, fits exactly into this tenant profile. If you recognize your own company in any of the scenarios described above, it is worth taking a look at gatewaya2.com where you will find modules suited to both large and smaller tenants.
FAQ: tenants of warehouses near the German border
Which industries most often look for warehouses in the Lubuskie region?
Most commonly these are companies from the automotive, furniture, metal, food and construction sectors, along with 3PL logistics operators and e-commerce businesses. What they share is a need for efficient access to the German market.
Why are German companies moving warehouses to Poland?
The main reason is lower operating costs on the Polish side of the border, while staying close to the German market and their own production plants. This allows them to cut costs without extending delivery times.
Do large or smaller tenants dominate the region?
The market is mixed. Alongside large facilities built for a single tenant under the BTS model, a significant share of the space is taken up by 3PL centers that serve several smaller, unrelated tenants at the same time.
How does the low unemployment rate affect tenant decisions?
The unemployment rate in the Lubuskie region, below the national average, points to available labor combined with a relatively stable job market. This is an important factor for companies planning to hire staff for newly opened warehouse facilities.
Summary
Demand for warehouses near the German border today is driven by very different groups of tenants: German manufacturers moving part of their operations to Poland, automotive suppliers working in a just-in-time model, e-commerce companies building distribution centers that serve two markets at once, 3PL logistics operators, and manufacturers from the furniture, metal, food and construction sectors. What connects them is one thing, the region’s strong trade relationship with Germany, which receives more than 40% of Lubuskie’s exports. If your company fits one of these profiles, I encourage you to get in touch with my office and to take a look at the offer at gatewaya2.com, gatewaya2.de.
What’s next?
In the next article in the series, I will look at why warehouses near the German border are gaining value today, and what market data supports that.
Sources used in this article
Forbes.pl, “Lubuskie. Przemysł napędzany granicą” (Lubuskie: industry driven by the border) — data on the structure of the Lubuskie region’s economy, industry’s share of regional GDP, and trade ties with Germany.
https://www.forbes.pl/diamenty/2026/lubuskie-przemysl-napedzany-granica/wwp8p40
Portal Województwa Lubuskiego, “Informacje o gospodarce Województwa” (Information on the region’s economy) — official economic data for the region, including the unemployment rate and export structure.
https://lubuskie.pl/cms/50/informacje-o-gospodarce-wojewodztwa
terenyinwestycyjne.info, “Lubuskie to jedna z najszybciej rozwijających się lokalizacji magazynowych w Polsce” (Lubuskie is one of the fastest-growing warehouse locations in Poland) — information on tenant profiles in the region’s main cities (Zielona Góra, Gorzów Wielkopolski, Nowa Sól, Świebodzin).
IndustrialGO, “Gdzie wynająć magazyn?” (Where to lease a warehouse?) — guide on warehouse market trends by region.