In response to Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine, luxury fashion house Chanel has stopped selling its products to customers who intend to use them in Russia. Chanel has also closed its stores in Russia.

"The latest sanctions from the European Union and Switzerland prohibit ‘the sale, directly or indirectly, of luxury items to any natural, legal person or entity in the Russian Federation or for use in the Russian Federation," Chanel said in a statement.

"The ban applies to luxury goods priced at more than €300 or $326, which applies to most Chanel products," they continued.

Chanel's ban infuriated Russian influencers. They called this discrimination “Russophobia” and trying to cancel Russia.

One of them is TV presenter Marina Ermoshkina. In a video she uploaded on Instagram, Marina was seen cutting up her Chanel bag with garden scissors.

The action was followed by other influencers, such as Victoria Bonya, a model who has 9.3 million followers on Instagram.

““If Chanel house does not respect the clients, why do we have to respect Chanel house?” says Victoria in the video.

Katya Guseva, a DJ who has 598 thousand followers, does the same thing. In the description of the uploaded video, Katya shared that she always wanted a Chanel bag. However, she decides to throw the Chanel bag out of her daily life as the situation changes.

“I am against Russophobia, I am against the brand, which supports Russophobia and discrimination against women based on nationality,” Katya said.

Chanel declined to comment on the reactions of the Russian influencers, but in their statement they apologised for any misunderstanding the decision may have caused, as welcoming all of our customers, wherever they come from, is a priority for Chanel. The company acknowledged that “this process of walking through the law has caused some of our customers disappointment.”