The brand of Auchan grocery store is pictured in Saint-Sebastien-sur-Loire close to Nantes, France, February 1, 2022. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe/File Picture
PARIS, March 27 (Reuters) – Privately-owned French retailer Auchan plans to take care of its presence in Russia, its CEO stated in an interview revealed within the French newspaper Journal du Dimanche on Sunday, prompting Ukraine to name for a boycott of the worldwide chain.
Auchan, which has round 30,000 employees, 231 shops and e-commerce actions in Russia, has already been criticised by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy for remaining operational in Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.
Within the interview revealed on Sunday, Auchan’s chief govt Yves Claude stated he feared the corporate risked shedding property or exposing native managers to potential authorized troubles if it pulled out of Russia.
The agency would additionally stay in Ukraine, Claude stated, the place its 43 supermarkets and round 6,000 employees, together with in areas hit by the warfare, have been working below “excessive circumstances”.
“A very powerful in our eyes is to take care of our workers and guarantee our major mission, which is to proceed feeding the populations of those two international locations,” Claude stated.
Responding to the report, Ukraine’s international minister known as for a boycott of Auchan and all of its merchandise.
“Apparently, job losses in Russia are extra necessary than the lack of life in Ukraine,” Dmytro Kuleba stated on Twitter.
Ukrainian President Zelenskiy has stated it was essential that every one Western firms depart the Russian market and don’t cowl their “thirst for revenue” by means of “low cost” communication, explicitly citing Auchan and Swiss meals large Nestle (NESN.S).
The corporate generated 3.2 billion euros in gross sales in Russia final yr, round 10% of its international gross sales, and expects losses this yr in that market.
Moscow says the objectives for what Putin calls a “particular army operation” embrace demilitarising and “denazifying” its neighbour. Ukraine and its Western allies calls this a pretext for an unprovoked invasion.
Reporting by Mimosa Spencer
Enhancing by Nick Zieminski and Raissa Kasolowsky
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