Holland and Barrett owned by Russian Oligarch

That’s a shock isn’t it ? I thought it was a good old British store.

I seldom go into our local one any more, but I would boycott it now.

Definitely boycott.

Some Lush products are apparently made in Domodedovo in Russia. Who knew?

I read this yesterday so I won’t shop there anymore.

I don’t buy much in H&B anyway.
But I’ll be looking elsewhere in future.

As for Lush, the overpowering smell from the shop has always put me off - I’ve never once been inside.

If that's true about Lush then irony isnt the word, they have spent the last few years telling us all off for everything.

I get tablets in Holland and Barrett every month. Will be going somewhere else now.

I won't be shopping at H&B any more.

I get my supplements online from Healthspan. May be more expensive at times but they are very good quality.

I always assumed it was British and shopped there fairly regularly pre-covid but sourced everything elsewhere after lockdown. I will not be buying from them again. I think it would be interesting to add to this list if anyone knows of other retailers/producers that we can consider boycotting.

Before Fridman’s involvement, Holland & Barrett was owned by the American private equity firm the Carlyle Group, a major investor in the weapons industry. The Bin Laden family were major investors in Carlyle until 9/11. Michael Moore famously exposed these connections in Fahrenheit 911.

H&B has previously been owned by Booker (now part of Tesco). Booker has its own murky history of exploitative labour practices in Guyanan sugar production. Of course, H&B have not always been averse to its own kind of slavery. Does anyone else remember their partipation in the unpaid jobseekers scheme and how very upset Chris Grayling was when people criticised the company for it? A lot of very profitable High Street companies participated in that scheme to get free labour.

Scratch beneath the surface of many popular retailers and you’ll discover things that will make you feel very uncomfortable and question where you spend your money.

We should all start shopping in independents. Mind you, where do they source some of their goods? It’s a minefield out there sometimes, trying to be ‘good’.

I shop a lot in H&B and it’s hard to know what to do. I’d like to boycott but there are jobs on the line.

I loathe the buy one get one for a penny trick in H&B. Just make everything the right price and let people buy the number they want. I wonder how much of the second item is bought just because it's a penny and then both product and packaging are wasted.

I certainly won’t be buying from then again. I don’t like Lush products anyway.
It will be very interesting as time goes by to see what companies are owned by Russian Oligarchs.

I come out in a rash just walking past the Lush store, there is always a horrible overpowering sickly smell wafting out.

I won’t be buying in H&B anymore.

Ignorance is not always bliss. Dash. I liked H&B. No longer.

It seems that all rich Russians are persona non grata. They won't all support Putin's actions. This is getting to be like the attacks on shops owned by perfectly innocent Germans and Italians in WW2. I don't buy from H&B but if I did, this news would make no difference to me unless I had proof that the owner supported Putin.

Fair comment, G, but I wouldn't think it possible to discover the owner's political persuasion therefore I feel inclined to do my own small thing in my own small way. However, you do make a good point regarding smaller independent outlets.

I'm afraid that an awful lot of well known and loved 'British' businesses are no longer in British ownership. A legacy of the power of money and a belief that no questions asked 'foreign investment' is good for the UK.

There's a list here of iconic British brands (not quite the same as businesses, I know) that are foreign owned... It's not comprehensive. No mention of Russian ownership of Chelsea FC or US ownership of Boots, for example...

www.lovemoney.com/gallerylist/73626/famous-british-brands-that-are-foreignowned

Germanshepherdsmum

It seems that all rich Russians are persona non grata. They won't all support Putin's actions. This is getting to be like the attacks on shops owned by perfectly innocent Germans and Italians in WW2. I don't buy from H&B but if I did, this news would make no difference to me unless I had proof that the owner supported Putin.

I kind of agree with you, GSM (there's a first ) The source of the owner's money is something to investigate. But as so many Russian billionaires made their money from plundering Russia it is hard to be objective.

It's an interesting read Maizie. But I imagine that none of us stops buying a favourite brand because it's no longer British owned or made in Britain. Maybe if the sale of a manufacturer had been restricted to British people only, a good many would have been underfunded and ceased to exist.

I won't shop there again. thanks for informing me

I thought he was “on the board” and understood that he’d resigned.
I thought it was actually owned by L1 - is that wrong now?
Thanks.