by Olha Hembik | 2026-05-28

Walk into a Russian hard discounter and you won't find helpful staff, attractive displays, or much of anything except products stacked on pallets at the lowest prices around. For a growing number of Russians, that is enough.

Russia is in the middle of a discount retail boom. In the past five years, the number of discount stores has more than doubled. Last year alone, their ranks grew 12%, reaching 11,800 locations nationwide, according to data from Infoline, a retail analytics firm.

The chains driving that growth -- Moya Tsena, Chizhik, Pobeda, Svetofor and others -- are filling a gap left by the 4,500 traditional stores that closed in 2025, the first net decline in 25 years.

The numbers behind the boom are bleak. Russians now spend 39.1% of their income on groceries -- the highest share in 18 years, according to Erik Naiman, a Kyiv-based financial analyst and civic activist.

"High expenses are making people cut down on food purchases and shift to discounters," Naiman told Kontur.

A pivotal shift

Ivan Fediakov, chief executive officer of Infoline, described the hard discounter format in unsparing terms.

"The hard discounters have rather inexpensive in-store equipment, minimal staff and absolutely no service whatsoever. Because of that, they can guarantee a minimal cost of operation and consequently the most affordable prices," he told state news agency RIA Novosti in April.

Oleg Abelev, head of analytics at the investment company Rikom-Trust, called the trend toward hard discounters pivotal. Economic pressure has forced Russian consumers to reassess how they shop, with shoppers from the premium segment moving to mid-market stores, and mid-market shoppers moving to the budget segment, he said, as cited by The Moscow Times.

Shoppers visit discount stores up to five times a month on average, according to Kommersant. The core customer base is families earning between 90,000 and 150,000 RUB (roughly $1,000–$1,650) per month. More than a third of households in Moscow and St. Petersburg fall into that range.

A survey by the Paket by X5 service found that 78% of Russians are tightening their belts on food. Sixty-four percent are actively seeking out promotional discounts. Russian Central Bank surveys of businesses across all of Russia's regions confirm the pattern: consumers are shying away from expensive products, and meat sales are down.

The chasm widens

Anastasia Bychkova, a pseudonym, worked as a contracted screenwriter for Moscow television in 2019 and stays in contact with former colleagues there. She described a society increasingly split between the very rich and everyone else.

"In Moscow there's now a sharp divide between the rich and the poor. People who used to feel OK financially have sunk. The rich are still rich. My friends in Moscow say that the 'average' people have disappeared. In the last two years this chasm has become especially noticeable," she told Kontur.

She said her Moscow contacts link the decline to the war in Ukraine and Western sanctions, but keep that view to themselves.

"Instead, what you hear is that there's now a crisis in the whole world," she said, describing how Russian media reinforces that framing daily.

Her more concrete illustration: cooking oil is now sold in anti-theft plastic containers. Guards watch anything priced above 400 RUB (about $4.40). Raw smoked sausage, chocolate, and alcohol all require close attention.

Hunger and history

A Gallup poll found that 31% of Russians say they lack enough money for food, and 39% say economic conditions in their region have worsened.

Mykhailo Strelnikov, founder of the Museum of Victory over Despotism in Poland, drew a direct line between economic pain and political instability.

"Hungry revolts could save Russia. That sort of thing has happened before in Russian history. When there isn't enough money for food, people start to wonder whether they really need these ruins of another Ukrainian village," he told Kontur.

For now, discounters are meeting demand, and the stigma around them is fading. Alexander Anfinogenov, an independent analyst, said the old image of these stores as depressing is giving way to something more practical.

"The most important thing is that the products that people came into the store to buy are in stock, and the prices, of course," Anfinogenov said. "Amid declining interest in hypermarkets, the hard discounters are completely occupying their niche."

Fediakov predicted demand will keep rising through 2026 and beyond. Russian incomes show no sign of meaningful growth, and neither does the war.