French retail chain Auchan has commented on a journalistic investigation that the brand’s division in Russia, Auchan, may have been engaged in supplying goods to the Russian military involved in hostilities in Ukraine. In his statement The retailer categorically denies the allegations against him.
Auchan said in a press release that all of the company’s stores that remain open in Russia continue to operate “to allow the Russian population to feed themselves.” The retailer stresses that it “does not carry out, support or finance any” charity “collections in favor of the Russian army.
“Auchan Retail is extremely surprised by the allegations, which are in no way supported by the results of an internal study which demonstrated strict compliance with the rules in force,” the statement said.
In a survey published on February 17 by several media, including a French newspaper The world , it was alleged that in March 2022, employees of Auchan in St. Petersburg, under the direction of senior management, collected various goods from the company’s warehouses, after which they handed them over to participants in the military operation in Ukraine under the guise of humanitarian aid. The material indicates that the list of goods included food, socks, T-shirts, gas cylinders, sleeping bags, cigarettes, matches, lighters, axes, nails, razors.
Auchan said the order to collect humanitarian aid came from the Saint Petersburg City Hall. The commercial network assured that he did not pay for these goods and did not know to whom they were destined.
“None of the items ordered could raise questions from the company as to their final destination,” the statement said.
In addition, journalists reported having found in Auchan stores in other Russian cities, including Samara, Rybinsk and Vladimir, collection points for “humanitarian aid for Donbass”. The French retailer said it did not install them. According to Auchan, in the shopping center of Samara, mentioned in the investigation, the collection point was organized by the owner of the shopping center, while it was located outside the territory of Auchan. The company assured that store employees were not involved in its installation.
“Like any private buyer, Auchan has no way of knowing what the products purchased are ultimately used for,” concludes Auchan.
The authors of the investigation turned to the Russian management of Auchan for comment, but they refused to answer questions from journalists. Following the publication of the material, Auchan Ukraine posted a statement on Facebook (owned by Meta*) saying that Ukrainian employees were “shocked” by the information it contained, and also requested clarification from the French office. In turn, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba said on his Twitter that “Auchan has become a full-fledged weapon of Russian aggression”.
In 2022, there were 231 stores operating under the Auchan brand in Russia. About 30,000 people were listed as employees of the unit.
After the start of the military operation in Ukraine, Auchan repeatedly denied reports of its withdrawal from Russia, as well as the transfer of Russian activities. In particular, in July 2022, the Auchan press service declared that they intend to continue working in the country as usual and do not foresee any changes in the strategy and structure of operations. Yves Claude, CEO of Auchan, in an interview with the Journal du Dimanche published in March 2022, said that the retailer continues to operate in Russia due to the desire to keep staff and fulfill its main mission – “to continue feeding people”.
* Meta’s activities in the implementation of Facebook and Instagram in Russia are recognized as extremist and prohibited
