Theoretical Foundations of the Digital Transformation of Food Retail

Abstract

In the modern theory and practice of entrepreneurial activity of the country's economy, a sufficiently clear understanding of the issues of digital transformation of food retail is not given. The purpose of the article is to generalize domestic and foreign experience in the formation of conceptual and categorical apparatus in relation to the processes of digitalization of a food retailer. The methodological basis of the research includes theoretical provisions of digitalization of the economy, development of trade and services, technologies of digitalization of business and food retail. The research methodology is based on the application of methods of monographic, comparative analysis, grouping and classification of current sources, modeling. We use domestic and foreign scientific works of the last five years devoted to the processes of digitalization of retail as the information base of the study. The paper presents the results of a comparative analysis of current concepts and processes of digital transformation of retail in Russia. The author's definition of the terms "food retail" and "digital transformation of food retail" for the domestic economy is given. We systematized the stages of digitalization of the Russian food retail by the timing of the introduction of digital technologies. Author compiled classification of food retail depending on the number of digital technologies implemented. The result of the research and its scientific novelty is a conceptual model of digitalization of food retail in Russian practice. The author proposed to evaluate the effectiveness of managing the digitalization process in food retail by the degree of development of the "core" of retail, management system and supply system. According to the proposed model, the development of retail digitalization considered according to the level of use of digital technologies in the elements of the "core". For business development, it is necessary to implement an appropriate "system of providing" digital technologies and maintaining the effectiveness of their use by qualified employees of the departments of the "management system". The theoretical and practical significance of the study lies in the fact that the proposed interpretation of the concepts, stages and classification of digitalization of food retail has not been systematized before. The organizational and management model developed by the author contributes to the implementation of standards for providing food retailers with digital technologies in Russia, aimed at increasing the competitiveness of retail and increasing the quality of service.