TRENDS IN THE FORMATION OF ASSORTMENT POLICY OF RETAIL CHAINS AND DAIRY PROCESSING ENTERPRISES IN RUSSIA IN THE DAIRY CATEGORY

In Russia, the consumption of dairy products corresponds to global trends: there is an increase in the consumption of cheeses, yoghurts and dairy desserts, while traditional products are declining. Demand is shifting towards more complex and higher quality dairy products. The objective of the assortment policy is to ensure that at each moment in time the set of goods offered by the enterprise optimally meets the needs of consumers in terms of quality characteristics and volume. Retail chains implement a policy of social responsibility, setting a minimum trade margin for the most significant categories of dairy products, including milk and butter. In federal retail, there is complete import substitution of basic dairy products, but a small share of imports is retained in order to maintain the diversity of the range of these products. The study presents key trends in the development of specialized chains selling dairy products: new players appear on the market every year and existing chains are actively developing, stores of new formats appear, and the range of chains changes. The study used data from company websites, interviews with chain store managers, reports from market players, analysis of statistical data from Rosstat, the Federal Customs Service and other sources. Optimizing the range of dairy products while maintaining the quality and availability of the main product categories is currently effective. This strategy will allow dairy processing companies to reduce costs and increase efficiency, and retail chains will simplify the processes of storing and managing inventory.