Lebanon: Based to some media reports, the Lebanese clothing company MAAG, which took over for Zara when it stopped doing business in Russia, plans to close several of its locations there due to poor sales.  

The owners of the clothing stores MAAG, Dub, Vilet, and Ecru, based in Dubai, opened stores in Russia in May in the former Zara, Pull & Bear, Stradivarius, and Bershka locations.

However, as some media reports suggested, MAAG is considering quitting the Russian market altogether in August after three months of operations due to poor results. 

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According to the Telegram channel MASH on Wednesday, "If Zara earned 2-3 million rubles per day and up to 4 million on weekends, MAAG made only about 300-400 thousand rubles per day." 

Pavel Lyulin, vice president of the Russian Union of Shopping Centres, meanwhile, told the news source Izvestia that it is still too early to discuss the closure of MAAG stores. 

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We can confirm that they are not selling well because their selection differs greatly from what Zara offers. However, in our opinion, it is still too early to discuss closing three months after the opening," he said.

According to Yale University analysts, over 1,000 Western companies left the Russian market as a result of sanctions imposed after Moscow began its military operation in Ukraine. Russia was compelled to switch to non-Western allies as a result.

The presence of new brands from Turkey, China, India, and other 'friendly' countries has increased in Russia.

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Last year, the Spanish clothing conglomerate Inditex decided to completely withdraw from the Russian market after closing its stores, including Zara, Bershka, and Massimo Dutti. Later, a buyer based in the UAE purchased some of the conglomerate's more than 500 Russian retail locations