Decathlon continues to do business in Russia
Decathlon is apparently one of the few French companies to maintain its activities in Russia. Although all business has been transferred to a Russian company, Decathlon products can still be purchased there. According to a report, the French are using a dummy company in Dubai.
According to research by the investigative medium Disclose, the French Decathlon Group has continued to do business in Russia despite the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. A letterbox company in Dubai was used to conceal the deliveries of goods manufactured in Bangladesh to Russia, Disclose reported.
The products supplied include fleece jackets, ski jackets, outdoor clothing and shoes worth around eleven million euros. According to the documents viewed by Disclose, Decathlon ordered the goods via a branch in Singapore and had them shipped to Russia via Dubai.
Decathlon initially refused to comment on the allegations. Disclose quoted the company as saying that it wanted to "do everything possible to prevent the resale of its products in Russia". The Mulliez Group, to which Decathlon belongs, is one of the few French companies to have maintained its activities in Russia. Although 36 Decathlon stores were sold to the Russian company ARM in the summer, pictures on Russian social networks show that Decathlon products were still available there when they reopened in November.
Shortly after the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, Decathlon, like many other Western companies, announced its withdrawal from Russia. However, a few months later, the goods reappeared in stores taken over by a Russian company.
The sanctions imposed so far do not explicitly include sporting goods. "It's a gray area," writes Disclose. Among other things, the export of weapons and luxury items to Russia is prohibited. Following the EU sanctions package adopted on Monday, the import of diamonds from Russia is now also prohibited.
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Despite the ongoing Russian war of aggression against Ukraine and international sanctions, some French companies, including Decathlon, have continued to operate in Russia's sporting goods industry. However, to bypass the sanctions, Decathlon used a letterbox company in Dubai to conceal the deliveries of goods manufactured in Bangladesh to Russia.
Source: www.ntv.de
