IKEA and Inditex Explore Possibility of Resuming Operations in Russia

Swedish IKEA and Spanish Inditex (Industria de Diseno Textil SA), which owns the brands Massimo Dutti, Zara, Pull & Bear, Oysho, Bershka, Stradivarius, Zara Home, and Uterque, are looking to reopen their stores in Russia. This was announced by Viktor Evtukhov, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of Russia, as reported by Smotrim.ru.

“For IKEA, it is important that the product range is saturated. It is difficult for them to do that now. Once the company finds an exit, it will reopen. Moreover, it is ineffective for IKEA to abandon its own stores and leave them for someone else,” Evtukhov stated.

The Deputy Minister emphasized that IKEA has a “very good Russian market.” The business process is structured in such a way that the company brings goods in from other countries and also has factories in Russia. “For now, even the foreign companies that temporarily suspended their operations have stated that the suspension is not related to Russia’s special operation in Ukraine, but rather that there are issues with logistics and goods supply. They plan to resume operations. They do not want to leave in the visible future because the Russian market is large,” Evtukhov said.

The same applies to Inditex. “It is said that the Russian market is important,” the Deputy Minister concluded.