Overdue credit of trust: networks in the regions delay payment of goods to suppliers
About a third of Russian suppliers faced a delay in payment for goods from retail chains in early 2026, Rusprodsoyuz told Izvestia. The problem is common among regional retailers. Against the background of a decrease in consumer activity, they partially retain working capital by deferring payment. How things are going in large retail and whether to expect the situation to worsen is in the Izvestia article.
Why did local retailers start delaying the payment of goods
About 27% of suppliers faced a delay in payment for goods from retail chains in early 2026, Dmitry Vostrikov, executive director of Rusprodsoyuz, told Izvestia. From a survey conducted by the association on April 3 among its participants (over 450 large vendors), it follows that 15% of respondents indicated delays in payments of up to five business days, 8% indicated delays of more than a week, and another 4% said that this had become common. More than a quarter (28%) of the respondents refrained from answering, 45% stated that "partners mostly make payments on time." The dynamics of changes in responses to the previous survey was not carried out in the union.
Delays occur for those who work mainly with local grocery retail players, confirms the director of interaction with retail chains of a large food operator. In general, regional retailers have a problem with systematic payment disruptions, said Mikhail Lachugin, an independent consultant to retail chain suppliers. According to him, this situation is common in many regions of the country. As an example, he cited St. Petersburg chains, which, according to the expert, do not pay vendors on time. Thus, there have been many debt claims against TD Intertorg (People's 7th Family, Idea) and the Land network, which have already ceased operations today. And the Pulkovo network, which also ceased operations in early 2026, is still receiving lawsuits.
Counterparties often have to "extort money" from local retailers for the product, he said. For example, in St. Petersburg, there were schemes where a retail chain could promise money, but asked counterparties to bring half of this value in cash so that the network would make a payment to a partner. Local retail chains pay those who "demand more," the expert noted.
What is the situation of large retail chains
Major food producers have not had similar problems with retailers so far, two top managers in agricultural holdings, the vice president of a processing company and the director of work with retail chains of large food production told Izvestia. According to one of them, his company works mainly with major players and under long-term contracts that provide for fixed or formula-based long-term supply conditions. This mechanism prevents possible interruptions in the delivery of products, he said.
Lenta, Magnit and X5 pay all contractors on time, their representatives told Izvestia. Neva Milk Group (Thousand Lakes, Sirtaki) has high-quality mechanisms for selecting partners and monitoring their behavior, so funds arrive on time, said its CEO Vladimir Zyukov.
Meeting payment deadlines is a basic condition for working with suppliers, said the Chairman of the Association of Omnichannel Retail Companies (ACORT). Stanislav Bogdanov. According to him, large retailers buy out food products into ownership, assuming all commercial risks. This practice assumes full financial responsibility to supply chain partners, he stressed.
By the end of 2025, the share of the top 10 largest retailers in the RTO Food segment was 44.5%, which is 1.8 percentage points more than a year earlier, according to data from the analytical company Infoline.
What problems do small retailers have?
Non-payments to suppliers arise from local retailers against the background of increased financial burden in conditions of high credit rates and rising transaction costs, Stanislav Bogdanov believes. Regional networks have fewer opportunities than major players and a more limited margin of financial strength in interacting with banks in matters of lending, said Ilya Bereznyuk, Managing Partner, Managing Partner of Agro and Food Communications. According to him, they are also under additional pressure from rising costs and tax rates in early 2026.
Wholesalers provide small chains with higher prices for many items, especially in the category of socially important goods such as milk and bread, Mikhail Lachugin said. Consumers will not find local retailers with the same low prices for products of well-known major brands compared to federal companies, he explained. Therefore, small players are in a situation where they are offered higher purchase prices, the consultant said.
According to him, they cannot shoot them down, but they are not ready to sell the goods much more expensive either — in this case, the buyer will not go to them. As a result, such sellers try to compensate for constant cash gaps at the expense of other, usually local suppliers, without paying them money on time for the goods, the expert explained.
The situation with non-payments among regional players may worsen this year, Mikhail Lachugin suggests. Now even large distributors are experiencing cash gaps, which is why they partially or completely suspend work with local retail chains, the expert noted. In such cases, suppliers terminate contracts with trading partners or go to court, the expert added.
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