DEVELOPMENT OF TOOLS FOR ASSESSING THE SUSTAINABILITY OF TRADE NETWORKS IN THE CONTEXT OF THE LIFE CYCLE

Abstract

The article examines tools for assessing the organizational and economic sustainability of retail chains in the context of their life cycle under conditions of crisis and wartime uncertainty. It is substantiated that conventional approaches to evaluating financial stability, based mainly on static indicators of liquidity, profitability, and solvency, are insufficient for diagnosing the adaptive capacity of retail structures, as they do not account for the dynamic and phase-based nature of retail chain development. To address these limitations, an integrated life cycle-based sustainability assessment model (ILC) is proposed. The model combines financial, investment, operational, and risk-related indicators within the FIOS framework, allowing sustainability to be interpreted as a dynamic characteristic that evolves across different stages of the retail chain life cycle. The study identifies the key life cycle phases of retail chains expansion, consolidation, turbulence, and recovery or restructuring and demonstrates that each phase is characterized by a specific configuration of performance indicators, risk levels, and capital structure features. The methodological approach involves the normalization of indicators and their aggregation into an integral sustainability index with weighted components reflecting the sectoral specifics of retail activity. Particular emphasis is placed on operational efficiency and asset turnover as critical drivers of  sustainability in retail chains, especially during periods of heightened uncertainty and disrupted supply chains. A scale for interpreting ILC values is developed, enabling the classification of retail chains according to sustainability levels and corresponding life cycle phases. The practical significance of the proposed tools lies in their applicability for identifying sustainability gaps, accumulated risks, and recovery potential of retail chains, as well as for supporting managerial and investment decision-making in crisis and post-crisis environments. The results contribute to the development of a more flexible and analytically grounded approach to sustainability assessment in the retail sector, taking into account both short-term resilience and long-term development trajectories.