Edit: A few hours following the publication of our article, the Decathlon brand announced, via a press release, that it was “suspending” its activities in Russia.
Will leave, won’t leave? The question does not concern the transfer of Mbappe au Real Madrid, more some French companies implanted in Russia. The country is experiencing a mass exodus following the invasion of Ukraine, many large international companies packing their bags far from Moscow (McDonald’s, Starbucks, Coca-Cola, LVMH, Hermès, Chanel, Land Rover and Volvo, among others). Ukrainian diplomats have repeatedly urged businesses still present on the spot to follow this example, calling in particular on the French to boycott Auchan supermarkets.
But for the moment there is no question for the Mulliez group (Auchan, Decathlon, Leroy-Merlin) of losing Russia and its profitable market share. Maintained in Moscow, these brands are also very popular in their country of origin, Decathlon having been elected for the last three years as the favorite brand of the French. Can this refusal to leave a country that has become an opponent harm the brand image and turnover of these groups?
Unethical purchases in France
“The French are not very politicized in their purchase”, notes from the outset Elisabeth Tissier-Desbordes, professor of economics at ESCP and specialist in consumer behavior. The speaker continues: “Apart from militants and activists, the population dissociates the opinion they may have of a brand of the purchase of its products. McDonald’s or Amazon are good examples of this phenomenon. All the more so in this period of economic insecurity, adds the expert, where the price is much more important than convictions.
“When we go to Auchan or Leroy-Merlin, we don’t think of Ukrainians”, says Isabelle Andernack, professor at the Burgundy School Of Business in the accounting department. For her, a major boycott might have taken place in the event of a direct link with the war. For example if they were companies selling weapons or equipment to the Russians – which is far from the case. “The products sold at Auchan and Leroy-Merlin are essential. You can boycott LVMH to clear your conscience, more difficult your usual supermarket, ”adds the accounting expert. Elisabeth Tissier-Desbordes drives the point home: “The French have never boycotted a brand, even a foreign one. So a national flagship…”
win the war
Cracks may still appear. ” The sales will probably suffer an impact for a quarter or two, but sulks of this kind never last very long”, informs Marcel Botton, founder and deputy general manager of the Nomen publicity marketing agency. He recalls: brands as historic as Coca-Cola or Perrier have also suffered boycott calls following scandals, without this ultimately impacting their turnover. Proof of this ability to ignore, this expert has even forgotten the scandals in question for the two brands of drink. “A boycott is like a vaccine: without a booster shot, it quickly loses its effectiveness,” metaphorizes Marcel Botton.
The question is therefore in particular to know who will win the communication war between Ukraine and Russia in the eyes of French opinion. Quality versus quantity, according to the expert: “The Ukrainians have much better communication, but the Russians have a much greater strike force on social networks, which might tip the scales in the long term”. A poll from March 2022 showed that 73% of French people were pro-Ukrainian, and only 3% pro-Russian.
Economics before empathy
If such a rejection of Russia is prolonged, significant financial losses might occur for the groups in question. But the risk is limited. “Emotion always ends up fading,” pleads Isabelle Andernack. Unless she comes back with other buzz, positive or negative. Decathlon is currently in the eye of the storm because of the war in Ukraine, but who remembers that two years ago almost to the day, the brand offered its diving masks to caregivers to protect them from the coronavirus ? It is thus with the buzz, they pass and follow one another. “The Mulliez group can hope that a future event will cause us to forget this position on Russia”, notes Marcel Botton. For Isabelle Andernack, the group can even seek to create its own positive buzz, for example with food distribution via Auchan.
Despite the massive support of the French population for the Ukrainians, Marcel Botton thinks that the loss of turnover in France for these brands will only be 10 or 15% maximum, for only a few months at most. A low impact which almost alone justifies staying, like Isabelle Andernack’s figure: “Mulliez has much more to lose from leaving than staying. The Russian market represents 10% of Auchan’s turnover, and 18% of Leroy-Merlin. These stores have been established in Russia for eighteen years. They are not going to change everything for a geopolitical event”.
And no matter if their image tarnishes for a few weeks, time should do its work, concludes Marcel Botton: “We forget the controversies and bad communications. Not the marks. »
