Since war broke out in Ukraine, more and more fashion companies have restricted their business activities in Russia. Be it in the fast fashion segment or in the luxury sector, whether sports brands or watch retailers – the list is growing every day. In addition to closed shops and online shops and interrupted supply chains, the fashion industry is also positioning itself with regard to the political events in the East by means of public appeals and fundraising campaigns. FashionUnited summarized the situation.
The doors of the fashion chains remain closed
The Spanish fashion chain mango closed its stores in Russia at the end of last week and ceased online sales. The Spanish fashion group index followed on Monday – all 502 stores were closed. Russia is the fashion giant’s largest market after Spain, with more than 10,000 employees working for the group there, according to the 2020 annual report.
Also the HM stopped selling all brands represented in Russia, closed the stationary points of sale and paused the activities of the Russian online shops.
The British fashion mail order business asosas well as the trading group JD Sports also stopped their activities, followed by jeans manufacturers Levi Strauss and sporting goods puma Earlier this week. TJ Maxx cut ties to Russia when the US retail group divested itself of its stake in the Russian retail chain Familia. The sporting goods manufacturers Adidas and Nike are also interrupting sales in Russia. Adidas will continue to pay employees and support them with transportation and accommodation assistance. Psychological support should also be offered to those affected.
The PVH Group, which includes Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein, has halted all operations in Russia and Belarus, PVH said on Monday. The US group had already stopped online trading at the end of February. 550 people are affected by the circumstances, PVH will continue to pay the employees in Russia.
Watch brands are putting the business on hold
As a result of the sanctions against Russia, the Swiss Swatch Group will no longer deliver to Russia. However, the local shops will remain open for the time being, the group announced on Friday. How long the local business can be operated without new deliveries remains open.
The international watch marketplace Chrono24 is also stopping business for the time being, the company announced on Tuesday. “The events of the past few days contradict our value system – both human and entrepreneurial. Therefore, we have made the decision to temporarily stop our marketplace offering in Russia,” says Tim Stracke, Co-CEO and Founder of Chrono24.
Jewelery maker Swarovski is also closing its 12 Russian stores and temporarily halting all deliveries to the country. The online shop is also paused. Swarovski will continue to entertain the 80 employees.
Fashion houses join the pause
The French luxury brands Hermès and Chanel, as well as the fashion group LVMH, have all ceased their activities in Russia. For Hermès, this means the closure of three stores and sixty Russian employees are affected. The company will “continue to support the local people,” the company said on Friday. At Chanel, 17 stores are affected by the measures, at LVMH 124 outlets.
In addition to the French fashion houses, Prada is also temporarily withdrawing from sales in Russia, as the company announced on Monday. The company’s thoughts are with the colleagues “and their families who have been affected by the tragedy in Ukraine”.
Likewise, Hugo Boss announced a pause in business in Russia while employees continue to receive wages, the company confirmed to FashionUnited on Tuesday. Similar to many other companies, Hugo Boss first suspended online activities, followed by the closing of stores and stopping all advertising on Monday.
The appeals from the fashion industry
In addition to the fashion companies have also positioned several fashion associations. Both the British Fashion Council and the Italian fashion association CNMI addressed their members and called for solidarity takes place was quickly dipped in the blue and yellow colors of the Ukraine.
OneGranarythe platform of Central Saint Martins, has reached out to the fashion industry with an open letter urging the entire industry to step up and take action.
Signs were also set at the fashion weeks in Milan and Paris – the Armani show in Milan took place without music and the label Sweet Lime Juice presented his collection in Paris with a message of peace. Balenciaga depicted the fate of the fugitives in his imagination and placed Ukrainian flags on the guests’ seats. The runway show by Valentin Yudashkin, a Russian designer, was canceled by the Paris Fashion Week committee. The reason for this was that the designer had not expressly “dissociated himself” from the war started by Russia.
Also the Messe Düsseldorf Group responded to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “As a consequence of the disturbing events in Ukraine, the supervisory board of Messe Düsseldorf has decided to suspend the business activities of the group of companies in Russia until further notice,” said a report on Tuesday. The decision “also includes the activities of the subsidiary Messe Düsseldorf Moscow”.
Donations for Ukraine
Brands that do not have physical stores in Russia or Ukraine and do not sell to the countries via online shops are also showing solidarity. Textile discounter Kik, for example, has started a fundraising campaign worth 5 million euros, the company announced on Monday. The sum will be donated to the UN refugee agency United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
The luxury brand Louis Vuitton announced a donation of one million euros to the children’s charity Unicef on Friday, before the store closures were announced. The money is intended to help those affected by the war. “Millions of children and their families are in imminent danger, so Louis Vuitton will support Unicef’s emergency response locally,” the fashion house continued. Parent company LVMH has also donated an additional five million euros to the International Red Cross.
The Japanese textile group Fast Retailing, which also owns Uniqlo, donated ten million US dollars to UNHCR to help people fleeing the war. The company also donated 200,000 textile items, including blankets and masks. Half of the in-kind donations are winter clothing that was forwarded from a recycling program at Uniqlo stores in Japan. The Tokyo-based fashion group has not yet planned to interrupt business in Russia. The situation will “continue to be monitored”. Tadashi Yanai, founder and president at Fast Retailing, told AFP, “Clothing is a necessity of life. Russians have a right to live like us.” Fast Retailing operates 49 Russian Uniqlo stores – which is only a fraction of the total 2,350 stores worldwide.
Adidas donated one million euros to various aid organizations, including the UN refugee aid, which is the German partner of the UNHCR, and made a donation in kind to those in need in Ukraine, Poland, Moldova and Hungary.
Armani donated 500,000 euros to UNHCR and gave a clothing donation to a humanitarian organization that distributes the textiles in the border areas of Ukraine.
In addition, the children’s aid ANWR donated to the people in the war region. The jewelery brand Thomas Sabo also launched a call for donations with Wir helfen Kinder eV. (FashionUnited/ AFP)