Lenta : launches its 2017 Back to School campaign

St. Petersburg, Russia; 28 July 2017 - Lenta (LSE, MOEX: LNTA), one of the largest retail chains in Russia, announces this year's launch of its Back to School campaign across the Group's hypermarkets and supermarkets. As part of the initiative, Lenta will be offering a special range of products for schoolchildren until 31 August 2017.

Spanning all product categories, Lenta stores are offering a selection of over 1,000 items selected especially for schoolchildren as part of this year's campaign. The offer includes stationery supplies, arts and crafts materials, school uniforms and gym attire, as well as various other accessories.

The special range, unique to the Company's standard hypermarket offering, is freshly selected every year following an in-depth demand analysis, with an eye on the latest retail trends and specific regional requirements. In this year's selection, domestic producers account for more than 50% of stationery products and for 30% of the included clothing and shoes.

Back to School is one of the largest campaigns run by Lenta, generating close to 50% of its annual stationery sales. In 2016, a total of 1.7 million customers purchased goods within the Back to School range, accounting for over 30% of all Lenta's customers taking advantage of the campaign.

The school goods market is dynamic with continuously evolving demand patterns. Over the last few years, customer appetite for calculators and art sets has shrunk in favour of more hi-tech devices. Recently, there has also been a marked decline in the need for uniforms due to schools purchasing them directly from manufacturers on a centralised basis.

At the same time, we have seen an increased popularity of merchandise with bright eye-catching designs, products featuring patriotic themes, as well as accessories that emphasise the owner's individuality (girl's ties, badges, hair clips, watches, braces, etc.).

Alexandra Shkalaberda, Lenta's Category Management Director commented:

'By launching our annual Back to School campaign at the end of July, we offer parents the opportunity to buy all the necessary school supplies in one place and well ahead of time. Parents can fully equip their child for school, purchasing a full set of clothing, a school bag, and stationery supplies all for about 3,500 roubles. The campaign duration, the included unique promotions, and imaginative school merchandise will all contribute to helping our customers plan their shopping and be well prepared for the beginning of the new school year.'

As part of the Back to School offering, Lenta expects to sell:

• over 25,000,000 exercise books;
• over 11,000,000 pens;
• over 4,500,000 pencils;
• over 600,000 drawing pads;
• over 400,000 school uniform sets;
• over 95,000 bows and ties;
• over 45,000 desk lamps.

About Lenta

Lenta is the largest hypermarket chain in Russia (in terms of selling space) and the country's fourth largest retail chain (in terms of Q1 2017 sales). The Company was founded in 1993 in St. Petersburg. Lenta operates 195 hypermarkets in 78 cities across Russia and 59 supermarkets in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk and the Central region with a total of approximately 1,173,416 sq.m of selling space. The average Lenta hypermarket store has selling space of approximately 5,700 sq.m. The average Lenta supermarket store has selling space of approximately 900 sq.m. The Company operates seven owned distribution centres.

The Company's price-led hypermarket formats are differentiated in terms of their promotion and pricing strategies as well as their local product assortment. The Company employed approximately 45,689 people as of 31 December 2016.

The Company's management team combines a mix of local knowledge and international expertise coupled with extensive operational experience in Russia. Lenta's largest shareholders include TPG Capital and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, both of which are committed to maintaining high standards of corporate governance. Lenta is listed on the London Stock Exchange and on the Moscow Exchange and trades under the ticker: 'LNTA'.

A brief video summary on Lenta's business and its Big Data initiative can be seen here.

For further information please visit www.lentainvestor.com, or contact:

Lenta
Тel:+7 (812) 336 39 97
E-mail: pr@lenta.com

FTI Consulting
Russian Media:
Anton Karpov & Victoria Afonina
Тel:+7 495 795 06 23
E-mail: lenta@FTIconsulting.com

FTI Consulting
International Media:
Leonid Fink & Viktor Pomichal
Тel: +44 7497 783 705
E-mail: Leonid.Fink@fticonsulting.com
Viktor.Pomichal@fticonsulting.com