Ozon offers sellers warehouse space in Kazakhstan after drone strikes hit its Russian logistics centers
Russian online marketplace Ozon is offering sellers warehouse space in Kazakhstan after Ukrainian drone strikes hit its logistics centers in Russia, aiming to keep orders flowing and expand in Central Asia.
Ozon, Russia's second-largest online marketplace, has said sellers can now store goods at warehouses in Almaty and Astana, Kazakhstan. The company said this would allow orders to reach customers in Russia without problems, while also speeding up delivery for local customers in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
Among the benefits it lists are delivery to Russia within a few days, no shipment restrictions, and free transportation of goods to Almaty and Astana until September 30.
Since late August, Ukraine has been targeting Ozon's warehouse infrastructure. A drone first struck a logistics center in the Samara region, and later warehouses in other regions also came under attack. These strikes followed earlier attacks on Wildberries, another major Russian marketplace.
In response, Ozon said a few days ago that it would store and sell goods directly from its pickup points. The company's network includes more than 80,000 such points across the country, which it says can operate as small logistics centers.
