HIGHLIGHTS
- Hospitality businesses such as Hilton Worldwide Holdings and Hyatt Hotels Corp recently declared plans to terminate their operations in Russia.
- Mondelez International, a food and beverage company, has announced that it will decrease non-essential operations, keeping only its food supply in Russia.
- With this pressure, Fast Retailing Group said that it would cease operations in Russia in order to help weaken the war. This group is expected to close the entire store, including online sales in Russia.
- Apple, H&M, Nike, Ikea, and LVMH Moet Hennessy, Louis Vuitton, Hermès, and Chanel announced temporary retail closures in Russia.
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Uniqlo is under pressure from customers and the internet community
When Russia invaded Ukraine, several retailers ceased doing business there. Uniqlo, which is part of Japan’s Fast Retailing and has 50 stores in Russia, is determined about staying in the country of Aries. Other retail competitors of Uniqlo, such as Hennes & Mauritz AB and Zara, had ceased operations in Russia.
Tadashi Yanai, president and CEO of Fast Retailing, pledged about a week ago that Uniqlo would not leave Russia. Yanai went on to say: “Clothes are essential items. The Russians have the same right to life as we do.” However, Yanai’s assertion has been received with a barrage of criticism from the online community.
Some social media users have used the hashtag #BoycottUNIQLO (Boycott Uniqlo) to show their displeasure with Uniqlo’s presence in Russia. Furthermore, Uniqlo’s decision to remain in Russia in the aftermath of the country’s airstrikes on Ukraine has provoked outrage among some of the company’s customers.
Faced with this pressure, Fast Retailing said on March 10 that it will cease operations in Russia as part of its efforts to undermine the war. This group is expected to close the entire store, including online sales in Russia.
Fast Retailing announced that it was distributing clothing and other products to Ukrainians who were evacuating the country. This group also provided $10 million to the United Nations Refugee Agency.
The Russian War in Ukraine causes a wave of international corporate migration
Russia’s onslaught on Ukraine is causing a wave of multinational corporate emigration. Apple, H&M, Nike, Ikea, and LVMH Moet Hennessy, Louis Vuitton, Hermès, and Chanel announced temporary retail closures in Russia. A few days ago, Levi Strauss & Company and Adidas announced that they would no longer do business in the country.
McDonald’s and Starbucks have also declared that hundreds of stores in Russia will be temporarily closed. Furthermore, automakers such as BMW, General Motors, Toyota, and Honda have stopped production and exported to the country.
Hospitality businesses such as Hilton Worldwide Holdings and Hyatt Hotels Corp recently declared plans to terminate their operations in Russia. Mondelez International, a food and beverage company, has announced that it will decrease non-essential operations, keeping only its food supply in Russia.
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