Luxury powerhouses LVMH, Kering, Hermès, and Chanel join growing list of US and European companies halting business with Russia

• Luxury retailers including LVMH, Kering, Hermès, and Chanel are temporarily closing stores in Russia.
• The companies join a growing list of retailers in the US and Europe who are ceasing business as Russia advances its invasion of Ukraine.

Luxury brands are joining the rapidly growing list of retailers temporarily halting business with Russia following the country's invasion of Ukraine.

French fashion giants LVMH, Kering, Hermès, and Chanel all announced on Friday that they will close stores in Russia, with some also making donations to support the effort in Ukraine. The luxury companies join the several US and European retailers that have ceased business in the region, including Ikea, H&M Group, Adidas, and Canada Goose.

Kering, which owns luxury brands including Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, and Balenciaga, on Friday announced in a statement on LinkedIn that is shuttering stores in Russia "for its Houses that the Group operates directly in the country."

The decision comes after the conglomerate announced on Wednesday that it would make a "significant donation" to the United Nations Refugees Agency, writing in an Instagram post that the company hopes for a "peaceful resolution of this conflict."

While LVMH did not immediately respond to Insider's request to comment, the company told The New York Times on Friday that it plans to close its more than 120 stores "given the current circumstances in the region." LVMH owns several high-end brands including Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Fendi, and Givenchy.

Like Kering, LVMH also announced it would make a first emergency donation of 5 million euros (the equivalent of 5.47 million US dollars) to the International Committee of the Red Cross. The company announced the donation in an Instagram post on Thursday and said it will also set up a fundraising campaign to collect donations from its global employee base.

"The Group's first concern is the safety of its 150 employees in Ukraine and is providing them with essential financial and operational assistance," LVMH wrote in the post.

Both Chanel and Hermès also took to LinkedIn on Friday to announce their respective closures.

"Deeply concerned by the situation in Europe at this time, it's with regret that we have taken the decision to temporarily close our stores in Russia and pause all our commercial activities from March the 4th evening," Hermès wrote on its LinkedIn page. "We will continue to stand by our local team."

Similarly, Chanel shared on LinkedIn that the decision comes amid the "increasing concerns about the situation" and "growing uncertainty to operate."

"We will no longer deliver into Russia, we will close our boutiques, and we already suspended our e-commerce," Chanel wrote in a post.