Inditex will begin the gradual reopening of its activity in Ukraine this week. This Tuesday it will resume its online activity and, this Wednesday, it will do so in around 20 stores of its different brands (three will be Zara) in the capital kyiv area. In this way, the Spanish multinational returns to the Ukrainian market after two years of absence after canceling all its operations as well as the closure of physical stores due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
After kyiv, the next reopenings will take place in Leopolis. Items from the Zara, Pull&Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho and Zara brands arrived on March 8. In any case, the company has pointed out, this process will be “gradual” both in physical and virtual stores and will adapt “to the needs of the market.”
In this way, and taking into account current circumstances, the group could open around half a century of stores in the country in the coming months, always in the capital area or western cities, the furthest from the front. Regarding online sales, the seven Inditex brands will resume the distribution of orders at the same time as they reopen their first physical stores, and the conditions of customer service will be announced at that time on the brands’ virtual platforms.
Withdrawal of Ukraine and Russia due to war
Inditex suspended its commercial activity in Ukraine in March 2022, following the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the imposition of Western sanctions. Before the Russian invasion, the textile company had 84 establishments in Ukraine, with profits in 2021 (last year before the withdrawal) of 58 million euros for an emerging market. Inditex’s decision to leave Ukraine was followed by its withdrawal from the Russian market. A year later, in April 2023, Vladimir Putin’s Government authorized the sale of the Spanish multinational’s business in Russia to the Daher group (United Arab Emirates).
In addition to Zara, the Spanish group operated in Russia with the brands Bershka, Pull&Bear, Stradivarius, Oysho, Massimo Dutti and Zara Home and had more than half a million stores, all on a rental basis. Until the outbreak of hostilities in Ukraine, Inditex obtained 8.5% of its operating profit from the Russian market.
However, a spokesperson for the textile giant has told EFE that once the return to the country has been decided, the group’s “priority” continues to be the safety of its employees and customers. The return to Ukraine has followed in the wake of other large multinationals in the sector that have returned to operate in the country, despite the fact that hostilities and war activity have not ceased.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry indicated that the return of Inditex was “one more step” after the reopening of McDonald’s or the textile competitor H&M, and then believed that the return of these companies to the Ukrainian market would help create jobs strengthen its economy in the midst of the delicate situation it is experiencing due to the war. In fact, the main fashion brands – both local and international – have been operating in the country for months.
