MADRID, 18 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) -
Inditex is studying the possibility of selling its business in Russia in a context marked by the war in Ukraine, although it could continue to operate in the country with Zara, which would change its name, while Massimo Dutti, Oysho or Zara Home would leave the Russian market completely .
Specifically, according to the Russian media 'Kommersant', the company founded by Amancio Ortega is considering the possibility of transferring its Russian assets to partners in a "friendly" country, for example, from Southeast Asia or the Persian Gulf.
Sources consulted by 'Kommersant' have explained that the transfer of Inditex's Russian business to the partners will take from six months to a year and have indicated that Massimo Dutti, Oysho and Zara Home will completely abandon the Russian market, while the rest of the brands , including Zara, will open under other names and with new collections no earlier than spring 2023.
A similar scenario was previously implemented, last July, by the Polish retailer LPP, with brands such as Reserved, Cropp, Mohito and Sinsay, which transferred stores in the Russian Federation to a company registered in the United Arab Emirates. At the same time, the fashion group's points of sale resumed their activity, but under new banners.
Last March, days after the war began, Inditex decided to close its 502 stores in Russia, its second market after Spain, with more than 9,000 employees, and suspend online sales in that country as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Of the 502 establishments, 86 are Zara.
Russia constitutes around 8.5% of the group's global net operating profit (Ebit). Specifically, the result before taxes of this market was 86 million euros in 2020 (229 million euros in 2019), with sales close to 5% of the total, which represents more than 1,000 million euros.
The company founded by Amancio Ortega highlighted at that time that all the stores operated on a rental basis, so the investment was not relevant from a financial point of view.
