Rimi Baltic 's decision means that from now on, almost 300 Rimi stores in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia will remove Russian-made goods from their range of products indefinitely, as well as stop importing them from international distributors. Rimi Baltic is currently informing suppliers of this decision and the removal of Russian products from store shelves has begun.
"The amount of goods produced in Russia for Rimi stores does not exceed 1% of the total assortment. However, the decision to stop selling Russian products is a symbolic step with a clear message - we are against military aggression and show solidarity with the Ukrainians among our customers and employees,” said Valdis Turlais, Chairman of the Board of Rimi Latvija.
The rival Maxima chain of supermarkets annouced a similar move, which also includes Belarusian products.
"In accordance with the common position of the Maxima group of companies, Maxima Latvija has suspended the purchase of products manufactured in Russia and Belarus and has decided to remove these products from the range of stores. The company's partners who deliver the specific goods will also be informed about this decision in the near future," said a Maxima press release, stressing that the percentage of Russian-made goods on its shelves was small.
