Nike Will Leave Russia Permanently Amid Invasion Of Ukraine
Nike is the latest global brand to exit Russia.
The American sportswear giant has announced its plans to cease all operations in Russia following the country's invasion of Ukraine in February.
Shortly after president Vladimir Putin ordered troops to enter Ukraine, Nike halted all online orders and closed its doors to stores across Russia.
Now the multi-billion-dollar brand has confirmed it is doubling down on its stance to turn its back on Russia.
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"Nike has made the decision to leave the Russian marketplace," the company said in a statement.
"Our priority is to ensure we are fully supporting our employees while we responsibly scale down our operations over the coming months."
It's understood Nike has more than 50 stores in Russia, but the famous 'Swoosh' company claim Russia and Ukraine combined account for less than 1 per cent of the brand's total revenue.
Other Western companies such as McDonald's, Starbucks and Amazon have also finalised plans to leave the region as a result of the devastating conflict which has now claimed so many lives.
In response, reports from Reuters suggest Russian officials are working on plan to punish foreign businesses for exiting the nation.
The legislations would ultimately see the Russian government seize the assets of these global companies and potentially impose criminal penalties.
If anything, though, these threats have only accelerated the departure plans for these big brands, so they're not in harms way until the legislations are signed off.
Whichever way you look at it, the mass exodus of big companies since February is leaving Russia increasingly economically isolated as the battle on the frontline in neighbouring Ukraine continues.
Despite this, Putin has still shown no signs of backing down.
Max Sherry