For Alexei Sagal, an industrialist from the Stavropol province in southern Russia, Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has been transformative.
The horse-breeding enthusiast has emerged as a key buyer of assets from fleeing western companies. Last week his group Arnest, which made its money as a contractor for some of the world’s largest consumer goods groups, agreed to buy Unilever’s Russian business for €520mn. It previously took over the Russian operations of Dutch brewer Heineken, US canning giant Ball Corporation and Swedish cosmetics group Oriflame.
Arnest’s income from sales doubled from Rbs7.4bn in 2021 ($77mn) to Rbs13.9bn last year, while basic profit soared about 24 times, from Rbs40.6mn to Rbs972.8mn, according to company disclosures.