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<\/div>\nDecathlon has continued to sell products in Russia despite promising to end operations in response to the invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n
The sporting goods retailer sold its 60 Russia stores to local brand Desport in October as it faced mounting pressure to pull out.<\/p>\n
While the move was meant to end the brand\u2019s Russian involvement, it has continued to supply products to Desport, according to investigative website Disclose.<\/p>\n
Internal documents revealed the French retailer earned at least \u00a39.5m from Russia, The Times reported.<\/p>\n
The Disclose website said: \u201cThe French multinational has continued to discreetly supply the Russian market with products bearing its flagship brands: Quechua, Wedze and Kalenji.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter conducting an investigation based on internal company documents, open-source videos and testimonies from several former employees, Disclose can reveal that Decathlon has set up a large system to conceal its exports under a supply contract with Desport.\u201d<\/p>\n
It continued: \u201cAt the heart of the move, on the fringes of legality, are the French group\u2019s top leaders, a shell company based in Dubai and a subsidiary of the brand based in Singapore.\u201d<\/p>\n
Subscribe to Retail Gazette for free<\/strong><\/h5>\nSign up\u00a0here\u00a0to g<\/span>et the latest news straight into your inbox each morning<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\nThe website also quoted a former Decathlon staff member, who said: \u201cI heard that Decathlon wanted to keep selling its products in Russia in the summer of 2023.<\/p>\n
\u201cI immediately realised that this was a secret project..wwe were not allowed to talk about it with our colleagues. For those of us in the know, using the word \u2018Russia\u2019 was banned. We had to use a code name: \u2018Sports_R\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
The sports retailer acknowledged the continue of supply, justifying the move by claiming it wanted to avoid job losses in Russia following the sale of its shops to Desport.<\/p>\n
In a statement to AFP news agency, the company said: \u201cIt was agreed, in accordance with local and international regulations in force, to continue for a limited duration to supply a limited amount of products so the new owner can launch its operation and preserve jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2022, Decathlon initially resisted calls to pull out of Russia in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine despite swathes of western brands including Ikea, Apple, and Zara suspending their Russian businesses.<\/p>\n
However, it finally suspended its Russian business after a backlash from global consumers in late March last year.<\/p>\n
The website also quoted a former Decathlon staff member, who said: \u201cI heard that Decathlon wanted to keep selling its products in Russia in the summer of 2023.<\/p>\n
\u201cI immediately realised that this was a secret project..wwe were not allowed to talk about it with our colleagues. For those of us in the know, using the word \u2018Russia\u2019 was banned. We had to use a code name: \u2018Sports_R\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
The sports retailer acknowledged the continue of supply, justifying the move by claiming it wanted to avoid job losses in Russia following the sale of its shops to Desport.<\/p>\n
In a statement to AFP news agency, the company said: \u201cIt was agreed, in accordance with local and international regulations in force, to continue for a limited duration to supply a limited amount of products so the new owner can launch its operation and preserve jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2022, Decathlon initially resisted calls to pull out of Russia in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine despite swathes of western brands including Ikea, Apple, and Zara suspending their Russian businesses.<\/p>\n
However, it finally suspended its Russian business after a backlash from global consumers in late March last year.<\/p>\n