Competitive Convergence and Digitalization in Bulgarian Retailing

Digitalization changes the limits of modern life in the social and business spheres. Finding themselves in direct contact with and being dependent on the digitally literate and technology-oriented user, retailers seek to build dynamic competitive advantages with the opportunities of digitalization which blurs and moves their strategies closer together in the intensified competitive struggle. In that regard, the aim of the current study is to determine the presence of a competitive convergence between the leading traditional and online retailers in the consumer market and the impact of COVID-19 on the competition. The methods of content analysis of documents, the dispersive and deductive analysis in the aspect of the theory of competitive advantage and the structure of the sector have been applied. Retailing is increasing its significance for the country's economy as traditional sales increase, though at a significantly slower rate than electronic ones, especially after the pandemic. In the context of the decrease in the concentration of the traditional market, contrary to the growth of the electronic one, the share of the retailers who are practising hybrid forms is rising. This way the results obtained display an interpenetration (convergence) of offline and online retailing and the achievement of sustainability of the competitive advantage via constant and balanced use of digitalization.