Ukrainian drone attacks on Wildberries logistics centers damaged 10% of the network, disrupting deliveries for millions and exposing a retail sector already in decline.
Ukrainian drones struck multiple logistics centers operated by Wildberries, Russia's largest online retailer, damaging an estimated 10% of the company's network and disrupting deliveries for millions of consumers, the company and Russian media said.
The attacks hit facilities near Moscow, St. Petersburg, Krasnodar, Stavropol and Yekaterinburg, causing fires and operational suspensions. Wildberries founder Tatyana Kim confirmed the strikes. Ukraine said the warehouses support Russian military logistics, a charge Russia denied. President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine is "bringing the war back home" to Russia.
Wildberries, often described as Russia's answer to Amazon, dominates e-commerce in the country, delivering goods across its vast geography. Together with Ozon, the two companies account for about 8.5% of Russia's GDP and employ more than 5% of the workforce, according to estimates cited by Russian media. The company now has more than 200 logistics facilities, with plans to build new warehouses in Belarus and Kazakhstan.
The attacks come as Russia's retail sector faces mounting pressure. The country experienced its first decline in the number of shops in more than two decades, with thousands of stores disappearing from Moscow and St. Petersburg, retail analysts said. No major new international retail brands entered Russia in the first quarter of 2026, a first since the invasion began.
Many Western retailers left after the 2022 invasion. McDonald's (Alpha Score 50, Mixed) became Vkusno i Tochka. Starbucks (Alpha Score 46, Mixed) became Stars Coffee. Subway continued as Subjoy. Consumers view these domestic clones as inferior, analysts said. The originals generated footfall and encouraged visitors to shopping centers, leading at one point to Russia's Shopping Centers Association publicly imploring retailers including H&M, Uniqlo and Zara to return.
IBC Real Estate, the Russian arm of real estate broker JLL (Alpha Score 57, Moderate), reported that international retailers vacated more space than they took up in 2025, and only 12 new international brands entered Russia during the year, roughly half the number in the prior two years. The vacancy rate in Moscow shopping centers increased by 1 percentage point year-on-year to 5.7% across 2025, IBC Real Estate said.
For retailers, the implications stretch beyond Wildberries. The Wildberries attacks will likely leave many Russians unable to access products and hurt hundreds of thousands of small businesses that rely on the platform, the company said. The economic impact of the strikes could deepen the retail sector's travails, though there will be few tears for Russia's self-inflicted retail woes.
Zelensky's statement captures the strategic shift: "We are, quite justly, bringing the war back home."
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