Spot failure: O'STIN closed 62 stores and cut 15% of staff
One of the largest fashion retailers, O'STIN, has begun to reduce its store network amid declining sales, Izvestia has learned. In 2025, the company closed 62 outlets, 2.6 times more than a year earlier. Its development has been suspended for today, two sources told the editorial board. Against the background of falling consumer demand, other networks are also optimizing and laying off staff. Thus, the Snow Queen reduced the number of employees by 14%, Kari — by 12.5%, and Gloria Jeans — by 5.7%. What happens to non—food retail is in the Izvestia article.
Why has the number of stores decreased?
By the end of 2025, O'STIN (Austin LLC) closed 2.6 times more than a year earlier. This follows from the explanatory note to the company's RAS report, which was reviewed by Izvestia. The number of closed stores was 2.3 times higher than the number of open ones: 62 versus 19. At the same time, the number of employees decreased by 15% over the same period to 4,896 people, the document says.
The network's development is currently suspended, two sources familiar with its plans told Izvestia. In March, the company held a committee that did not confirm the unfreezing of the network expansion, one of them said. The second interlocutor notes that the retailer will continue to close stores in 2026. The task is to optimize the work due to lower profitability against the background of rising logistics and tax costs, as well as a decrease in the company's turnover, he explained. In 2025, retail sales fell by 17.4% to 40.4 billion, according to the disclosure data.
O'STIN is one of the largest retailers in the clothing and footwear segment in Russia (part of Sportmaster Group). It was founded in 2003 as a sub-brand of casual clothing for people with low incomes. The first store opened in Yekaterinburg. In 2005, the brand was separated into a separate company. The outlets operate in supermarket and discount formats, their average area is about 500 square meters. m. The retailer's share in the fashion market in 2024 was estimated at 2.1% (fifth place), Infoline calculated. By the end of that year, the company, according to its own data, operated 700 stores in Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Armenia and Belarus. By the end of 2025, Austin LLC's revenue under RAS amounted to 49.9 billion rubles, which is 13% less than in 2024. Net profit for the same period decreased 1.6 times, to 887.4 million.
The group opens new stores only as a last resort, one of Izvestia's interlocutors notes. In the first case, if the owner of the premises does the finishing for the retailer. The second option is a long—planned opening in an important facility, he said. Today, the network, according to the interlocutor, is scrupulously working on optimizing existing points. If the company is not satisfied with the indicators, it decides to close the store, he said.
All brands of Sportmaster Group have been optimized, another Izvestia interlocutor familiar with its plans emphasized. The group has taken a "wait-and-see attitude" towards its brands, the second source noted. Last year, she opened several Demix and Kappa stores, he says. At the same time, the results "are not encouraging everywhere yet," so the launch of new outlets is "also on pause," he said.
A representative of Sportmaster forwarded questions to O'STIN. They declined to comment.
Why are Retailers cutting staff
2025 turned out to be "quite difficult" for the clothing and footwear segment, said Zulfiya Shilyaeva, Senior Director and head of CMWP's retail real estate department. According to her estimates, the turnover of the networks decreased by 7-10% during this period. For some retailers, the past year has been the hardest in the last few years, she says.
Today, retail chains are working to optimize their strategies, agrees Vladimir Chernus, head of Retail real estate at IBC Real Estate. Reducing the number of staff is one of these measures. According to the expert, in the conditions of decreasing attendance at shopping malls, the same number of employees is no longer required. In addition, the development of technology reduces the need for companies to employ a large number of employees, he added.
By the end of 2025, the number of employees of SK Trade, which manages the Snow Queen stores, decreased by 14%, to 3,430 people, in the Kari shoe chain (Kari LLC) — by 12.5%, to 7,918 people, in the Concept Group (brands Concept Club, Bestia and Acoola), which is part of in AFK Sistema, by 31%, to 1,190 employees. Sportmaster reduced its staff by 5%, to 17,261 people, and Gloria Jeans — by 5.7%, to 4,984.
Lyudmila Trukhina, HR Director of the Snow Queen, calls the reduction of employees "a natural process of retail respiration" due to increased business efficiency. Such fluctuations reflect the dynamics of any large company, the representative of Sportmaster agrees. According to him, the number of staff is affected by the temporary suspension of certain points for repairs, seasonal demand for labor and other factors.
The decrease in the number of employees is due to a general reduction in the number of stores, as well as a reduction in staff per outlet, said Mikhail Burmistrov, CEO of Infoline Analytics. So, from 2023 to 2025, Gloria Jeans closed at least 100 of its own stores amid optimization, the industry publication Shopper's estimated. In 2026, the company intends to close another 150 outlets, RBC wrote.
Optimization also caused the closure of five Snow Queen stores in 2025, Lyudmila Trukhina said. The Concept Group has reduced some of its employees amid changes in the company's brand development strategy, its representative said. According to him, the company has decided to focus on the development of the children's clothing segment — today its own network of Acoola has 145 outlets. To increase labor productivity, retailers are implementing digital automation tools, said a representative of Sportmaster.
Gloria Jeans and Kari did not respond to Izvestia's inquiries.
January-February 2026 showed a further decrease in the revenue of fashion retailers, stated Zulfiya Shilyaeva. The Concept Group intends to continue its business transformation, including by optimizing its own retail network, its representative said. This year, retailers will focus on improving retail spaces and portfolios, as well as developing flagship stores to attract a new audience and increase customer loyalty, believes Vladimir Chernus.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
