French haute couture houses have decided to join the long list of companies that have stopped selling in Russia.
Luxury brands such as LVMH, Hermes, Kering and Chanel have decided to temporarily close their stores in Russia, in support of Ukraine, which has been facing a Russian attack for 9 days.
Haute couture stores have been left out of the sanctions introduced by Western governments, but many of them have found it difficult to run the business normally following measures taken by Britain, Europe and the US.
The head of luxury Hermes bags and that of Swiss Cartier, were among the first to announce the suspension of their businesses in Russia.
LVMH, which has in its portfolio brands like Christian Dior, Givenchy, Bulgaria, etc. will close about 124 boutiques across the country starting from Sunday.
Chanel also decided to announce through a status on LinkedIn that given the current situation and the growing uncertainty day by day, it will temporarily close its sales in Russia. The same decision was made by Kering which is the home of Gucci and Saint Laurent. With 2 stores in Russia and about 180 employees it decided to discontinue sales as a result of "growing concern about the current situation in Europe".
Source: BBC