In the world 17:05 23/07/2015

The Guardian: British brand Harvey Nichols leaves Azerbaijan four months after opening

The English department store chain Harvey Nichols has pulled out of its first store in Azerbaijan just four months after opening in the oil-rich state widely criticized for human rights abuses, according to the Guardian.

According to the report, the seven-floor store in Baku’s Globus Plaza no longer runs under the upmarket department store’s name after a split with license partner Perfomans. “Harvey Nichols has terminated its licence agreement with the operator of the Baku store.

Consequently, the Baku store no longer operates under the Harvey Nichols brand,” the retailer said in a statement and added that it could not comment further for legal reasons.

The Guardian points that the Baku outlet was the department store’s eighth overseas venture and the largest outside London (over 10 thousand sq. meter). The journal Retail Week reported that Harvey Nichols began moves to exit the store within weeks of opening.

According to the Azerbaijani news portal Haqqin.az, the department store Globus Plaza, where the brand operated, belongs to Dunyamin Khalilov, a former MP and oligarch, who was recently interrogated in the General Directorate for Combating Organized Crime.

The Harvey Nichols came to Baku Globus Plaza in March 2015, and was used in that department store based on franchising. However, in May, the company told the Globus Plaza owners that it was going to cancel their contract, Haqqin.az reports.

Citing some information, Haqqin.az notes that Dunyamin Khalilov has outstanding loans of several hundreds of millions manats (Azerbaijan national currency, 1 manat = 0.95 USD) in International Bank of Azerbaijan. He is another “credit oligarch” Khagani Bashirov’s business partner. Globus Plaza’s problems immediately followed the arrests of the oligarchs who had large loans in the International Bank.

Back in March of 2012, a regional audit in the company Aylin, Nestle’s official distributor in Azerbaijan, revealed facts of corruption, which was reported to Nestle central office in Switzerland. Learning about the systemic corruption, the Swiss company decided to cut off all the commercial relations with Azerbaijan.



Source Panorama.am
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