PARIS (Reuters) – Cosmetics giant L’Oreal will temporarily close its own stores, and directly operated counters in department stores in Russia as well as its e-commerce sites in the country, it said on Tuesday, citing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“We strongly condemn the Russian invasion and the war in Ukraine, which is causing so much suffering to the Ukrainian people,” the French company said in a statement.
The world’s biggest cosmetics company also said it would suspend all industrial and national media investments in Russia and consider additional measures while seeking to take care of its 2,200 employees in the country.
L’Oreal has 326 Ukrainian employees, the majority of which remain in their country under what it said are “increasingly unbearable conditions”.
“We are concerned for them and fear for their safety,” the company added.
The group is donating 5 million euros ($5.44 million) to international and regional aid organisations as well as United Nations agencies providing humanitarian aid.
($1 = 0.9194 euros)
(Reporting by Mimosa Spencer; Writing by Benoit Van Overstraeten; Editing by GV De Clercq and David Goodman)