Following two weeks of Ukrainian drone strikes on warehouses across Russia, online retailer Wildberries founder Tatyana Kim condemned the attacks as acts of terrorism. Speaking on July 31, Kim outlined ongoing recovery efforts, compensation tranches for affected sellers, and upgraded facility defenses amid mounting economic fallout.
Tatyana Kim Denounces Warehouse Strikes as Civilian Attacks
Online retail giant Wildberries has found itself at the epicenter of intensifying long-range drone operations as Ukrainian drone attacks target key logistics infrastructure across Russia. Company founder and CEO Tatyana Kim addressed sellers, customers, and the broader business community in a video shared on her Telegram channel. She characterized the sustained offensive not as standard military actions, but as deliberate violence directed against non-combatants.
“exert pressure, destabilise the situation, and cause panic and shock among a large number of Russians.”
Tatyana Kim, Founder and CEO of Wildberries
According to Reuters, Ukraine has struck more than a dozen Wildberries sites since July 18 in an effort to disrupt the operations of a company that serves as a vital linchpin of the Russian consumer economy. Kim emphasized that the marketplace handles merchants and customers across 10 countries, arguing that the disruption ripples far beyond Russian borders.
Defenses, Fire Safety, and the Scale of Destruction
As online speculation mounted regarding the security posture of the retail giant, Kim pushed back against internet commentators questioning facility defenses. She asserted that every available engineering and protective measure has been deployed, with security reinforced on a daily basis despite escalating firepower from incoming drones.
In the specific case of the Yekaterinburg warehouse, more than 200 fixed-wing drones targeted the facility, igniting cars in the parking lot. Meanwhile, earlier strikes on logistics hubs in Kotovsk and Elektrostal resulted in eight worker fatalities and triggered massive blazes that disrupted daily operations.
To manage internal safety, Kim noted that the company overhauled its fire safety operations in 2024. The internal Fire Safety Service is currently led by an internal service colonel with more than 26 years of firefighting experience, managing approximately 2,000 personnel dedicated to daily hazard mitigation across the warehouse network.
Financial Compensation and Government Backing for Sellers
With thousands of small and medium-sized enterprises facing steep losses, Wildberries has moved to implement emergency financial measures. Kim cautioned vendors against unregulated lawyers and internet fraudsters attempting to profit from the crisis, urging partners to rely exclusively on official state and corporate channels.
The company has distributed two support payment tranches to sellers whose merchandise was destroyed in the blasts, with the second round reaching nearly 100,000 entrepreneurs. For larger corporate partners, Wildberries introduced increased loyalty discounts absorbed entirely by the company, alongside repayment holidays through its banking division.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov acknowledged the severity of the situation during a press briefing, telling journalists that The situation is indeed difficult because of the losses suffered both by the company itself and by representatives of small and medium-sized businesses.
Peskov confirmed that the federal government remains in active contact with Wildberries to coordinate assistance.
Broader Shocks to Russia’s Digital Retail Economy
The disruption to Wildberries highlights the vulnerability of Russia’s rapidly expanding e-commerce sector. Online retail across the country surged 28% in 2025, reaching 11.5 trillion roubles ($147 billion), according to data from the Association of Internet Trade Companies. Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak noted that digital platform transactions account for roughly 8.5% of the national GDP.
International vendors have also felt the impact. Turkish retailer Koton Magazacilik confirmed that portions of its inventory were damaged in the strikes on Wildberries logistics facilities. Despite these supply chain shocks, Kim stated that the company is actively restructuring its logistics network and redistributing inventory across alternate facilities to preserve delivery speeds and inventory turnover.
Unresolved Recovery Timelines and Next Steps
While the Kotovsk facility resumed accepting deliveries and returned stored goods to sale channels, other primary hubs remain shuttered as damage assessments continue. Wildberries plans to host in-person meetings next week with entrepreneurs in the hardest-hit regions to resolve operational bottlenecks on a case-by-case basis.
As federal authorities finalize a comprehensive support framework to be unveiled in the coming days, the ultimate timeline for full infrastructure restoration across incinerated mega-hubs like Elektrostal remains unconfirmed by corporate leadership.
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