Zara, Pull & Bear and Bershka return to Ukraine: when will the stores open?
1 March 2024 19:41
Spanish clothing retailer Inditex Group, which owns the Zara, Bershka, Pull & Bear and Stradivarius brands, is preparing to reopen stores in Ukraine. Inditex has announced this to the Financial Times, Kommersant Ukrainian reports 
The reopening will start with 20 stores, including in shopping centres in Kyiv.
In total, Inditex plans to open 50 of its 84 stores in Ukraine.
The decision comes after months of being bombarded by Ukrainian media and retailers with questions about when it would reopen its stores.
When Zara will return to Ukraine
Zara’s Spanish owner, Inditex, has told Ukrainian landlords that it will reopen in early April.
The company noted that Inditex will prioritise the safety of employees and customers and will adapt its plans to market conditions. Some Ukrainian employees have already been sent to Poland for training to prepare for their return to work.
Another 34 stores that will remain closed are located in parts of southern and eastern Ukraine directly affected by the war, where the Ukrainian government has banned commercial activity.
It should be noted that the official website of Zara in Ukraine does not yet contain any information about the reopening of stores in the country.
Store closures
Inditex Group closed its 84 stores in Ukraine on 24 February 2022, the day of the full-scale Russian invasion. Inditex owns the Zara, Bershka, Pull & Bear, Stradivarius, Uterque, Oysho and Massimo Dutti brands.
Since then, the company has stopped supplying goods to the country, but continued to pay taxes and salaries to its 1,000 Ukrainian employees, although most of them were at home without work. Inditex retained lease agreements with landlords during the closure of the stores, but did not disclose the terms.
