It has been proved that capital is a resource that is accumulated and is involved in the processes of reproduction and growth of value through mutual conversion of its various types, which are invested in the creation of assets, which is the total amount of financial resources of enterprises. It has been demonstrated that it is possible to determine the most rational ratio of capital indicators calculated on the basis of factors of influence, risks and practical experience that brings the target capital structure as close as possible to its optimal value. Given that the capital structure affects the market value of the enterprise through the price of capital, the concept of capital structure is studied in the same theoretical complex with the concepts of capital value and market value of the enterprise. The analysis has demonstrated that the first stage of optimizing the financial structure of enterprise’s capital as a specific object of anti-crisis retail business allows to determine the presence or absence of capital volume for a particular business entity. If the answer is positive, the optimization of the ratio of all sources of capital is carried out within this volume. If the available amount of capital is insufficient, it is necessary to find out whether the company has the opportunity to expand it and the sources to accomplish it. The second stage – assessing the capital structure by the criterion of financial stability – is carried out by comparing the actual values of the ratio of the current assets of business entities in retail trade in equity with the “normal” value, where its minimum level is 0.1. The capital structure is assessed during the third stage from the standpoint of the value of capital. Appropriate calculations are made by using the weighted average cost of capital of a business entity. The capital structure is evaluated during the fourth stage in terms of its efficiency. The basis for assessing the structure of capital by the criterion of its effectiveness is the calculation of the effect of financial leverage in previous periods and determining the impact of individual factors (return on assets, weighted average cost of debt, share of debt and equity) on this effect by using the method of chain substitutions regarding the weighted average cost of borrowed capital adjusted for the net operating result of the investment, the value of leased fixed assets, the amount of rent, as well as the share of financial loans, trade payables and long-term credit in the form of leased fixed assets in total borrowed capital. Finally, the target-oriented capital structure is formed during the fifth stage, taking into account the obtained results of optimization according to all the criteria and features of the components of capital and the factors that affect them. The fulfillment of this stage requires a thorough development of specific measures that should allow to form the necessary capital structure of the business entity in retail.