Ukraine news and archive

Fashion as cultural diplomacy: Ukrainian Fashion Week FW 25/26

How does one find beauty – and focus on it – amidst suffering? This is the question Ukrainian Fashion Week once again sought to answer. For the second time since Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the onset of the war in 2022, the event returned to Kyiv after it made its first comeback as a fashionable beacon of hope in September. Hope remains a...

Ukrainian Fashion Week to return to Kyiv

Ukrainian Fashion Week (UFW) will be returning to Kyiv for the first time since the Russian invasion. The fashion week will take place from September 1 to 4 and symbolises resilience, survival and hope, the organisers of the Ukrainian Fashion Association announced on Thursday. More than 50 Ukrainian brands, including Litkovska, Frolov, Bobkova,...

Inditex plans to reopen branches in Ukraine

Inditex, the Spanish parent company of popular fashion brands such as Zara, Massimo Dutti, Pull & Bear, Stradivarius and Bershka is planning to gradually reopen its shops in Ukraine from 1 April. Inditex confirmed the plan to FashionUnited on Friday and emphasised that the opening of shops would depend on local market conditions. The safety of...

Beauty giant Avon criticised for links to Russia

Beauty giant Avon is facing criticism for maintaining business ties with Russia amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Despite an earlier announcement about halting investments and suspending exports from Russia, Avon continues to recruit sales agents and operate a substantial production plant in the Moscow region, reported the BBC. Avon's parent...

EU imposes sanctions on Alrosa, Russia's largest diamond producer

In its twelfth series of sanctions, the European Union implemented restrictions on Alrosa, Russia's state-controlled diamond giant, and its CEO, as part of a wider ban on the importation of precious stones due to the conflict in Ukraine. The EU's move, initiated in December, aimed to block diamond imports from Russia as an additional measure to...

EU contemplates sanctioning Russian diamonds

The European Commission is considering extending sanctions on Russia to include diamonds, responding to the country's invasion of Ukraine. Russia, a major global diamond supplier, contributes one-third to the market. Despite previous sanctions on various Russian commodities, diamonds have been exempt, partly due to Belgium's desire to protect...

New fashion platform Soni celebrates Ukrainian designers in the UK

Soni London is a new fashion platform supporting and empowering independent Ukrainian fashion brands in the UK. Founded in 2022 by Ukrainian entrepreneurs Sonia and Eugenia, the platform has developed into a destination for sustainable and ethical brands. Using the female-founders’ experience of working in the fashion and creative industries,...