ANALYSIS OF THE ENVIRONMENT FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES OF TRADE ENTERPRISES UNDER EXISTENTIAL THREATS

Abstract

In conditions of economic uncertainty and instability, ensuring the effective implementation of competitive advantages of trade enterprises becomes of particular importance. The competitive potential of an enterprise, formed on the basis of resources, competencies, technologies, organizational capabilities or market positions, cannot always be transformed into sustainable competitive results. The article analyzes the contemporary environment for the implementation of the competitive advantages of trade enterprises in Ukraine under existential threats caused by military hostilities, economic instability, demographic changes, migration processes, transformations in consumer demand, and other systemic challenges. It is substantiated that the favorability of the environment for implementation of competitive advantages is an important prerequisite for ensuring the resilience, adaptability, and operational effectiveness of trade enterprises, determining their ability to utilize available resources, establish market positions, and maintain competitiveness. The article examines the structure of contemporary retail business in Ukraine and analyzes the dynamics of its key indicators, which made it possible to identify the main trends in the transformation of the trade sector under existential challenges. The level of favorability of the environment for implementation of the competitive advantages of trade enterprises is assessed based on a system of relevant economic, social, infrastructural, and market indicators. Regional differences in the formation of conditions for the operation of the trade business are identified, resulting from the uneven impact of military, demographic, economic, and infrastructural factors. A cluster analysis of the regions of Ukraine was conducted according to the level of favorability of the environment for implementation of the competitive advantages of trade enterprises under existential challenges, resulting in the identification of groups of regions with different characteristics of such an environment. The scientific novelty of the study lies in the comprehensive assessment of the favorability of the environment for implementation of the competitive advantages of trade enterprises and the typology of Ukrainian regions according to the respective level based on a cluster approach. The practical significance of the obtained results lies in the possibility of their application by trade enterprises to substantiate regional development strategies, select directions for adaptation to existential threats, and identify opportunities for implementation of the competitive advantages, as well as by public authorities and local selfgovernment bodies to develop differentiated measures to support the trade sector. The findings provide a basis for further developing a regionally oriented approach to ensuring the competitiveness of trade enterprises and enhancing the resilience of the retail business amid the prolonged transformations of the Ukrainian economy