After temporary suspension of operations, Nike announces permanent departure from Russia

The American sportswear manufacturer Nike is leaving Russia, three months after suspending its operations in the country, the company said in an emailed statement on Thursday (23).

On March 3, the company said it would temporarily suspend operations at all of its Nike-owned and operated stores in Russia in response to Moscow’s actions in Ukraine, adding that those still open were operated by independent partners.

This Thursday, it joined other major western brands, such as McDonald’s, in confirming that it will leave the country completely.

Foreign companies seeking to exit Russia because of the war in Ukraine face the prospect of new laws being passed in the coming weeks, allowing Moscow to seize assets and impose criminal penalties.

This has encouraged some companies to accelerate their exit.

“NIKE has made the decision to leave the Russian market. Our priority is to ensure that we are fully supporting our employees as we responsibly scale back our operations over the coming months,” the company said in an emailed statement.

For Nike, which gets less than 1% of its revenue from Ukraine and Russia combined, the move is largely symbolic rather than material to its bottom line.

The company has a history of taking a stand on social and political issues, from supporting football quarterback Colin Kaepernick in his decision to take a knee during the national anthem as a protest against racism, to dismissing Brazilian football star Neymar last year. past because he refused to cooperate in an investigation into allegations of sexual assault.

Russian media reported in May that Nike did not renew agreements with its biggest franchisee in Russia, Inventive Retail Group, which operates 37 Nike-branded stores in Russia through its subsidiary Up And Run.

Nike stock rose nearly 1% in US premarket trading.