Putin Team Russia, a major Russian sporting goods company, is negotiating to open its first stores in foreign markets, Dmitry Shiskin, the company’s owner, disclosed. The company plans to start with flagship stores in China, India, the United Arab Emirates and the countries of the CIS region. The brand is also looking at development opportunities in Central Asia.
Over the next few years, Putin Team Russia aims to open as many as 100 stores outside the country. In Russia, the company currently operates 16 mono-brand stores in the largest airports. In the coming months, it plans to open more stores in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan and several other major cities, although specific plans are not yet known.
“Abroad, the company may change its banner – the usual brand name will be replaced by the abbreviation PTR,” Shishkin said, not explaining the rationale behind this step. ”Moreover, in order to export our products, we must adapt them to a local consumer, for example, develop a new design for these territories, taking into account local tastes.”
Putin Team Russia plans to develop different products for each new market. The company intends to compete in two price segments, which Shishkin described as ”average minus” and premium. All sporting goods intended for foreign buyers are to be manufactured in Russian factories.
Shishkin is a Russian businessman who became famous in Russia after offering to sew a suit for Vladimir Putin at a meeting in the Kremlin in 2020. In May 2023, Ukraine imposed sanctions on several of Shishkin’s companies: Uniform Atelier, Bispouk Atelier, Praved and MTM Atelier. Shishkin responded by saying that the restriction would not impact the operations of his factories in Yekaterinburg, adding that he had ceased working with European companies and switched to partners in “friendly” countries, namely India, China, Uzbekistan and Turkey.
