The 'Russian Amazon': Billions, Divorce, and Bloodshed

Drones flew over Russia today, striking logistics hubs of the e-commerce giant Wildberries in the city of Kotovsk in the Tambov region and in Elektrostal within the Moscow region. While Ukrainian forces describe the attack as a major spectacle, an even greater spectacle lies behind the scenes of Wildberries, which involves several politicians. Approximately 40,000 stores across Russia were occupied with daily deliveries on Wednesday, September 18, 2024. These small villages have become part of the urban landscape and new shopping habits of local residents. However, later in the afternoon at the Moscow headquarters of Wildberries, a shooting incident caused panic. The founder of the company, Tatiana Bakalchuk, started as an English teacher who built one of the largest Russian online marketplaces from scratch through immense effort, becoming the wealthiest woman in the country. This version of the story is presented publicly by the company. In reality, her husband, Vladislav, was already an experienced businessperson, leading a telecommunications company and earning millions of dollars in profits. During the time when Bakalchuk opened the business and gradually boosted its performance, she met her future business partner Sergei Anufriyev, who offered to buy Adidas products for Wildberries for millions of dollars. Anufriyev later became a key shareholder in companies. A source told The Bell that he could “decide which suppliers to choose, how to conduct marketing, basically everything.” After years of successful operations, Wildberries announced an unusual merger agreement with the advertising agency Russ, which owns billboards throughout the country. This merger was reportedly approved even by President Vladimir Putin himself. Following the announcement, several top executives began leaving Wildberries, including Anufriyev. This led to a separation dispute between the couple that gained public attention. The situation escalated further when Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov unexpectedly released a video of a conversation with Bakalchuk, strongly criticizing those responsible for the business move and supporting Bakalchuk’s position in the divorce. She allegedly told him that his wife had left home, connected with an unknown company aiming to take control of the business and deprive him of wealth. Kadyrov responded fiercely, calling those who wanted to merge the companies “thieves” and stating they should not be considered people. He then instructed his close collaborator, deputy Adam Delimkhanov, to handle the case, whom he reportedly agreed to immediately. Kadyrov accused the owners of the company Russ of preparing a hostile takeover, pointing with his finger at Levant and Robert Mirzoyan. According to Bakalchuk, her wife had begun talks with Mirzoyan in April, then allegedly removed him from leadership at Wildberries and proposed a merger plan. The company was also linked to oligarch and politician Sulayman Kerimov, born in Dagestan. On social media, Bakalchuk stated that the deal was not a “hostile takeover” or a violent acquisition. She claimed she was separating from her husband and that he still holds just one percent stake in the company. The merger with Russ was described as a “necessary transformation” that would allow maintaining growth pace and development. The situation intensified in September when Bakalchuk entered the premises of the company accompanied by armed men, intending to forcibly take control. This resulted in a clash that ended with the deaths of two security guards from Ingushetia, according to Moscow Times. Bakalchuk and several others, including members of the Chechen community, were charged with multiple criminal offenses, including murder.