Wildberries Sets Its Sights on Africa with Strategic Partnership in Ethiopia

The Russian e-commerce giant Wildberries has entered into a partnership agreement with Ethiopia’s largest state-owned investment organization as part of its strategy to expand into the African market, according to a report by the state news agency TASS on Thursday.

Robert Mirzoyan, the CEO of Wildberries-Russ Group (RVB), and Brook Taye, the head of Ethiopian Investment Holdings, have allegedly signed a memorandum of understanding. This document sets the stage for collaborative efforts to adapt RVB’s products for the Ethiopian market.

The agreement also includes cooperation on investment and technological projects that aim to bolster Ethiopia’s digital economy, as stated in an RVB announcement referenced by TASS.

The specific details of the agreement have not been made public. Nevertheless, this collaboration demonstrates RVB’s ambition to extend its reach beyond its traditional Eurasian operations into burgeoning markets in Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia.

In addition to Russia, RVB has a presence in Armenia, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and China.

The alliance with Ethiopian Investment Holdings follows the previous year’s merger of Wildberries with outdoor advertising company Russ Group, which some analysts deemed disproportionate due to Wildberries’ considerable market dominance. The independent business publication The Bell suggested that this merger might be a part of Russia’s wartime redistribution of assets, favoring business leaders associated with the Kremlin.

Vladislav Bakalchuk, a co-founder of Wildberries and the former husband of current CEO Tatyana Kim, opposed the merger at that time, labeling it a «hostile takeover» orchestrated by Russ Group. He sought the assistance of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov in this matter. Kim announced her divorce from Bakalchuk around the same period that Kadyrov pledged to «reunite» her with her family and obstruct the merger.