One of Wildberries' largest distribution centers burned down in the Tula region. The company is changing its business model and moving warehouses to neighboring countries.
One of Wildberries' largest distribution centers burned down in the Tula region. The company is changing its business model and moving warehouses to neighboring countries.
On the night of August 5, a drone hit the Wildberries sorting center in Aleksin, Tula Region — the warehouse, covering an area of about 300,000 square meters, was completely engulfed in fire.
According to the calculations of the Armed Forces of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, published in early August, the Armed Forces of Ukraine attacked 18 Wildberries logistics facilities in 18 days.
According to The Moscow Times, the company has begun moving products intended for long-term storage to warehouses in Belarus, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan — countries where attacks are unlikely. According to sellers told in meetings with Wildberries representatives, the company has already started re-sending products abroad «right now,» although details about the impact on prices and delivery times have not yet been disclosed.
Kazakhstan’s Minister of Trade and Integration Arman Shakkaliev confirmed that Wildberries is leasing about 46,000 m² of warehouses in Astana and Almaty and is building about 260,000 m² more, which are planned to be put into operation in the first quarter of 2027. In Belarus, RWB is building a warehouse worth 11 billion rubles (140,000 m², of which only 20,000 m² have been put into operation as of May). In Uzbekistan, RWB is creating a Central Asian logistics hub of about 170,000 m², which should connect the markets of Russia, Uzbekistan, the Middle East and become a transit point for exports from China to Africa.
Bloomberg reported that Russia is also considering giving Wildberries sellers access to the warehouses of Russian Post and other logistics operators.
Sellers are most afraid that moving to foreign warehouses will lengthen logistics — namely, long-term storage warehouses provide large sellers with 70-80% of turnover. A separate problem is customs clearance: some goods enter Russia through «gray» or «black» schemes, so it will be difficult for small and medium-sized sellers to officially declare them for cross-border movement.
Amidst these upheavals, according to Roskanal, Wildberries has reduced the registration fee for sellers from China by 20 times — instead of 10,000 yuan, entrepreneurs will now pay 500 yuan to open a personal account. Until the end of August, one entrepreneur is also allowed to register up to 10 accounts.
Interestingly, according to media reports, Wildberries' competitor, the Ozon marketplace, has also begun preparing for possible attacks on its own logistics hubs, fearing that it will become the next target.
