In brief
Ukraine’s fourth‑day drone assault on Russia’s largest online retailer Wildberries has left dozens of warehouses destroyed and many small‑business owners scrambling. The attacks have halted deliveries, led to significant financial losses, and highlighted the fragility of Russia’s informal supply chain amid war escalation. Wildberries has offered temporary relief, but the future of Russian e‑commerce remains uncertain as further strikes loom. Meanwhile, the Russian state continues to grapple with mounting economic pressures as the war drains national finances.
Ukrainian drones have razed multiple Wildberries warehouses in a rapid series of strikes, leaving a hundred‑plus Russian small businesses in their wake.
After months of targeting oil infrastructure, Kyiv has shifted focus to logistics centers supplying military equipment. The new attacks hit Wildberries hubs in Elektrostal, Kotovsk, Krasnodar and Nevinnomyssk, forcing deliveries to halt and damaging goods worth an estimated £750 million (US$1 bn).
Smoke rises from a Wildberries warehouse on fire after an attack in Nevinnomyssk, July 22, 2026.
Even the largest e‑commerce platform in Russia operates as a marketplace rather than a retailer, meaning that the destruction of its storage sites skips the company itself and is borne directly by its sellers. One stationery vendor who ships through the Elektrostal hub said she lost all her stock in a single night, while a teenage‑clothing seller reported a loss of 1.4 million roubles (US$13 300). These losses hit the businesses hard and the platform’s recent clause, which omits drone attacks from its “force majeure” exceptions, added to the anxiety.
Wildberries’ owner, Tatiana Kim, promised to stand by the sellers and offered temporary discounts and waived shipping costs, but the lack of compensation and the threat of future strikes keep many frightened. The Kremlin has denied that the online marketplaces are being used for direct military supply, yet pro‑war commentators point to the sale of body armour and drone parts on these sites.
Russia’s war economy has already faced mounting pressure: VAT jumped from 20 % to 22 % in January, a number of tax breaks were cancelled, and 209 000 small and medium enterprises shuttered in Q1‑2026. Fuel shortages have worsened after Ukrainian strikes on oil depots, further draining the state’s coffers and stifling civilian growth.
"There are already a lot of nails, and they keep hammering them in. Is [the attack on Wildberries warehouses] another nail in the coffin? Well, yes, of course," said Prof. Ruben Eniklopov of Pompeu Fabra University.
The future of Russia’s informal e‑commerce will hinge on how the war reshapes business supply chains and whether the state can provide protective measures for its millions of small‑business owners.
