Ikea said in June that many workers will lose their jobs and it has guaranteed six months of pay for them, as well as core benefits. H&M said on Tuesday 6,000 employees will be affected and it was working on details of offering continued support in the coming months.

“I will start looking at Russian brands,” one H&M shopper, who gave only her first name Anya, said after emerging from the store.Īnother shopper, who only gave his name as Leonid, said he was “very hurt” that H&M is closing down, adding: “A good store is leaving.”īoth companies are making workers redundant as they scale down business in Russia. Shoppers buy items on sale in an H&M shop in the shopping centre Aviapark in Moscow, Russia (Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP) The racks and shelves were well stocked in the clothing retailer. Ikea’s sales are online only, while the H&M store at the Moscow shopping centre Aviapark saw a steady stream of young shoppers on Tuesday.

Sweden-based H&M and Netherlands-based Ikea paused sales in Russia after the military operation began and are now looking to unload their stocks of clothing and furnishings as they wind down operations there, saying the future is unpredictable. Russians are snapping up western fashion and furniture this week as H&M and Ikea sell off the last of their inventory in Russia, moving forward with their exit from the country after it sent troops into Ukraine.

Hampm holland