The Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee has entered into a licensing agreement with the X5 Retail Group, a major player in the Russian grocery market. The agreement was signed by the President of the Sochi 2014Organizing Committee, Dmitry Chernyshenko, and the Director of Corporate Affairs of X5 Retail Group, Mikhail Susov. Under the agreement X5 will become an official Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee retail sales operator: the sales of the Sochi 2014 licensed merchandise will be organized in 45 Russian regions in 3800 shops of its stores - Pyaterochka, Perekrestok and Karusel. In the coming year X5 expects to sell about several million units of Sochi 2014 licensed merchandise.

Thanks to this deal, Olympic retail sales volume for the Games of 2014 is expected to reach an all-time record for the history of the Winter Games with the total number of official Sochi 2014 retail stores growing to 4,300.

Stores in all three formats of X5 chain - Pyaterochka stores, Perekrestok supermarkets and Karusel hypermarkets - will offer customers a wide range of Sochi 2014 licensed goods for a total of more than a thousand items. These include souvenirs, clothes, toys, kitchen accessories and food. Thanks to the wide reach of X5 chain stores, anyone will be able to buy Sochi 2014 licensed merchandise close to his home.

The President of the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee, Dmitry Chernyshenko, noted:

"Sochi 2014 Olympic retail sales volume will rise to a new level thanks to cooperation with one of the largest Russian retail chain. We are transitioning to the more convenient retail sales format for the customer, when one can buy Sochi 2014 merchandise close to his home. This really is a unique way to promote the Sochi 2014 brand through the popularity and broad coverage of X5 stores so that Sochi 2014 goods will now be very visible."

The Director of Corporate Affairs of X5 Retail Group N.V., Mikhail Susov, marked:

"The Games in Sochi is a historic event for our country. We are proud of the fact that the X5 Retail Group, who’s Pyaterochka, Perekrestok and Karusel stores serve around 2 billion shoppers every year will become a part of history and make their contribution to the promotion of healthy lifestyles and the development of mass sports in Russia. X5 has always tried to be the best in the retail market, and we are very pleased that the Sochi 2014 Organizing Committee appreciated the opportunities and potential of our retail chains to promote the Sochi 2014 licensed merchandise. X5 Retail Group has extensive experience selling licensed merchandise, and now this list of products will complement the Sochi 2014 lineup, which, I am convinced, will be in high demand among our customers."

Notes to the Editor

X5 Retail Group N.V. is Russia's largest chain of grocery stores in terms of sales. The company manages stores in several formats: "soft" discounters under the Pyaterochka brand, supermarkets under the Perekrestok brand, hypermarkets under the Karusel brand, an Internet retail shop under the E5.ru brand, as well as stores that are "close-to-home" under various brands.

As of September 30, 2012 the company managed 3,472 stores that occupy leading positions in Moscow and St. Petersburg and have a significant presence in the European part of Russia. The company's network includes 2,936 "soft" discounter format stores, 350 supermarkets, 76 hypermarkets as well as 110 stores "close-to-home." As of September 30, 2012 the company had 102,000 employees.

Currently 47 licensing agreements have been signed with 44 companies in 41 categories as part of the Sochi 2014 Licensing Program. Sochi 2014 licensed merchandise will be sold in a total of 8,000 retail outlets across the country, and more than 5,000 branded goods with the Sochi 2014 mark will go on sale all before 2014.