Main Spatial Trends in the Development of Network Food Trade in Russia in 2000–2017

Abstract

The development of the food retail network in Russia began relatively recently. For 20 years, starting from the end of the 1990s, it has traveled the path from the first imperfect quasi-network structures to a modern mature stage, which is characterized by strengthened concentration and increased competition in the market. The paper considers the main trends in the transformation of its territorial structure at three levels: regions, large cities, and individual companies. The study is based on official statistics, aggregate data from leading network retailers, and materials from consulting agencies. The Russia’s socioeconomic heterogeneity and the catch-up nature of the development of domestic network trade have resulted in nonuniform coverage of the country’s territory with its services, as well as the uniqueness of the presented trade formats. In recent years, a limited group of regions has emerged in which the active development of the food retail network continues. In the rest of the country, it is proceeding much slower or is at the initial stage. Despite the fact that the differentiation of regions in the share of network trade in retail turnover continues to slowly decline, the gap between centers with different population sizes differing in the level and variety of available network retail services is becoming more and more noticeable.