Three months after Ukrainian drone strikes began targeting Russian logistics infrastructure, warehouse workers and third-party merchants navigating facilities run by e-commerce giants Wildberries and Ozon face mounting disruptions, stricter workplace rules, and severe inventory losses following dozens of attacks across multiple regions.
How Ukrainian Drone Strikes Hit Russian Logistics Centers
The campaign against online retail infrastructure began on July 18, when Ukrainian drones struck logistics hubs operated by Wildberries in Elektrostal outside Moscow and in Kotovsk within the Tambov region.
According to independent reporting, Russia recorded 49 attacks across 36 warehouse sites belonging to various commercial operators between July 18 and September 24. By late August, the strikes extended beyond Wildberries to hit facilities operated by rival e-commerce platform Ozon.
Among the struck locations was a logistics center in Chapayevsk within the Samara region, alongside facilities in Saratov and Adygeysk. Dmitry, an employee who worked at both the Saratov and Adygeysk Ozon warehouses, noted that management installed air raid shelters at the Saratov logistics center only after the facilities came under attack.
The attacks on warehouses in Samara, Krasnodar, and Makhachkala proved those [fears] right.
Alexander Shvets, head of the Wildberries workers’ union, via Meduza
Stricter Safety Measures and Ongoing Job Pressures for Warehouse Staff
Workers are drawn to logistics centers by pay that often exceeds regional averages and by flexible shift scheduling, factors that many employees weigh against the risks of working inside vast fulfillment hubs. During the July 18 attack at the Elektrostal warehouse, security guards initially kept workers inside the buildings.
After weeks of strikes on Wildberries warehouses, Ukrainian drones are now hitting Ozon facilities. We've compiled every confirmed attack so far. https://t.co/3I4hrd0nb0
— https://x.com/meduza_en/status/2093098481820811433
We’re still working for the war effort now. [That’s why Ukrainian forces] blew up a bunch of warehouses!
Oksana, warehouse employee, via Meduza
Workers note that management is now more attentive to employees’ need to stay in touch with their families
and permits basic mobile phones and identity documents inside operational areas—items previously restricted to changing-room lockers.
Financial Fallout and Rising Costs for Third-Party Marketplace Sellers
The destruction of dozens of warehouses has severely damaged the livelihoods of independent merchants who rely on Wildberries and Ozon to sell clothing, footwear, and accessories. Alina Litvinova, an entrepreneur who launched her women’s clothing brand Simple Paris on Wildberries in 2023, experienced firsthand the financial volatility of the platform.
After an earlier setback involving a monthly sales volume of about 200,000 rubles, Litvinova spent six months recovering from losses before facing a harsher operational environment. Merchants report that the company has continued to raise commissions, logistics fees, and advertising costs annually.
For sellers whose inventory was destroyed in the recent drone strikes, relief has been slow or inadequate. Anna Yemelyanenko criticized the platform’s compensation framework as a drop in the bucket,
noting that the marketplace made no explicit mention of comprehensive coverage for inventory stored in warehouses. Both Yemelyanenko and her distributor declined loans offered by the Wildberries-owned bank because their primary sales channel had stopped functioning entirely. Russia’s Finance Ministry did not announce dedicated support measures for Wildberries and affected sellers until August 24.