Russia's second-biggest online retailer targeted in Ukrainian strikes

Ozon employees were evacuated from Adygeysk in the Adygea region and Nevinnomyssk in the Stavropol region following Ukrainian strikes on the company’s facilities. Video footage circulated on social media and verified by the BBC shows a drone striking an Ozon warehouse in the Orenburg region and a separate clip depicting a large plume of smoke and flames rising from a warehouse in Dagestan. On Monday morning Ozon’s shares dropped as much as 12% on the Moscow Exchange, while AFK Sistema, the retailer’s largest shareholder, saw its stock fall by approximately 13%. When questioned about possible state assistance, the Kremlin replied, "working with concern representatives to make assorted options for providing enactment successful this hard situation". The overnight attacks followed a strike the previous day on Ozon’s site in the Samara region, which the company said left a number of workers injured. Ukraine’s defence ministry issued a statement on Saturday reading, "Systematic strikes connected dual-use goods retention centres complicate the enemy's logistics and negatively impact the Russian system as a whole. After Ukrainian units deed 15 of the largest logistics hubs of Wildberries, it was Ozon's turn." In the Odesa region of Ukraine, Oleg Kiper, the regional head, reported on Telegram that "overnight strikes targeted nutrient retention facilities and vigor infrastructure leading to 5 radical being injured". Founded in 1998, Ozon ranks as one of Russia’s earliest online retailers and stands second only to Wildberries in scale and nationwide presence, operating pick‑up points and delivery boxes across the country. The Ozon and Wildberries logos frequently appear together at shared collection points. Analysts note that the targeting of these platforms has brought the conflict closer to ordinary Russians. Both firms are often described as "Russia's Amazon" and are estimated to serve 85‑90% of the nation’s economically active population. In remote areas lacking brick‑and‑mortar stores, many Russians depend on Ozon and Wildberries for clothing and household appliances. Unlike Amazon, which sells goods directly alongside its marketplace, Wildberries and Ozon function almost exclusively as marketplaces, linking independent sellers with buyers throughout Russia, handling storage, delivery and payment processing. Consequently, much of the financial loss from the attacks has been absorbed by the individual sellers using the platforms. The Kremlin has denied that online retail platforms are being used for military supplies.