SINGAPORE, April 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE: LEVI) today announced ambitious plans to accelerate sustainable business growth and drive commercial success in the East Asia Pacific (EAP) region. Central to the growth strategy is the diversification of the business across geographies, apparel categories and distribution channels. Levi Strauss & Co. will be launching new stores and rolling out existing store refreshes and new in-store services throughout the region.

Among the new stores to be launched this year are Levi’s® stores in countries including Japan, Australia, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. Levi Strauss & Co. will refurbish a number of retail stores and shop-in-shops into NextGen Indigo stores, offering an elevated store experience that uses digital tools to streamline the consumer journey, including installing LED portal entry archways and LED screens for marketing content. Select stores in the region will introduce in-store tailoring services to offer greater personalization. As the retail market finds its new equilibrium, Levi Strauss & Co. will focus on omnichannel engagement, leveraging the hybrid customer experience model.

“We are committed to the future success of our business at every level and are reimagining what we do and how we win in today’s marketplace. At the same time, we are embracing the technologies of tomorrow to power innovation and better serve our customers and deliver greater value to stakeholders. We will do this by placing people at the heart of our business and through responsible practices because being a force for positive change is integral to being the world’s best apparel brand,” said Nuholt Huisamen, Managing Director and Senior Vice President at Levi Strauss & Co.

Whilst drawing on the brand’s 169-year heritage to drive key category growth, Levi Strauss & Co. is redoubling its digital transformation efforts. The global leader in jeanswear will leverage digital, data and AI to stay ahead of trends, drive efficiency and innovation in the product creation process, deliver omnichannel offerings, claim its space in the direct-to-consumer (DTC) sphere, and ultimately enhance the consumer experience.

As a company led by its core values of empathy, originality, integrity and courage and with a strong focus on diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I), Levi Strauss & Co. has always been a destination for top talent. Throughout the pandemic, the company rolled out numerous initiatives to support employees in the offices, retail stores, distribution centres and manufacturing plants including providing flexible work arrangements, additional resources, and financial support. Through the Red Tab Foundation, the-first-of-its-kind employee hardship fund, the company provided approximately $2.4M in financial support to more than 1,800 individuals in 2021. Primarily funded by employees, shareholders and retirees, this unique concept helped our community with everyday hardships, natural disasters and the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of its DTC strategy, the company also provided learning opportunities to existing staff to upskill themselves through training and development programs such as a Machine Learning Bootcamp to equip employees with the tools they need to thrive in a changing and increasingly digitalized economy.

On the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) front, Levi Strauss & Co. has pegged its targets to measurable metrics and remains committed to responsible and sustainable practices outlined in its 2020 Sustainability Report. The company is on track to achieving its 2025 Water and Climate Action Strategy targets. Initiatives include Water<Less® finishing techniques that have enabled billions of liters of water to be saved; reducing emissions across the supply chain; driving innovation in sustainable materials and designs through Wellthread; and advocating ethical consumerism through the Levi’s® Buy Better, Wear Longer campaign, these initiatives embody the company’s move to develop and implement circular products and practices

Levi Strauss & Co. also continues to be a strong advocate for social justice issues and equality for women, marginalized ethnic groups and workers in the region. To support individuals in need, Levi Strauss & Co. contributes a portion of its earnings to improve the conditions in local communities. This legacy of giving began with a $5 donation from modest profits over 160 years ago. Additionally, the Levi Strauss Foundation has donated more than $340 million in proceeds and organized programs, employee volunteerism and public support. In 2021, employees donated over US$1.5 million and completed 12,871 volunteer hours.

(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with PRNewswire India and this publication takes no editorial responsibility for the same)

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The Gamaleya Center’s preliminary laboratory study shows that Sputnik V demonstrates high virus neutralizing activity (VNA) against the Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant and is expected to provide strong defense against severe disease and hospitalization.

The study was conducted using sera with a long period after vaccination (more than 6 months after vaccination) as an indicator of Sputnik V’s long-lasing protection.

Sputnik V elicits strong and long-lasting T-cell response, and as 80% of epitopes in the spike protein are not affected by the mutations in the Omicron variant, Sputnik V is expected to provide long-lasting protection against severe disease by Omicron. Sputnik V’s long-lasting T-cell immunity contributes to 80% efficacy against Delta on months 6-8.

Sputnik Light as a booster significantly increases virus neutralizing activity against Omicronbased on sera 2-3 months after revaccination. Virus neutralizing activity against Omicron 2-3 months after a Sputnik Light booster in this preliminary laboratory study is higher than VNA against the wild-type virus 6 months after Sputnik V vaccination. Based on these data the expected efficacy of Sputnik V with Sputnik Light booster against Omicron infection could be more than 80%, as Sputnik V showed efficacy of more than 80% against wild-type virus 6 month after vaccination. 100% of individuals revaccinated with Sputnik Light as a booster developed neutralizing antibodies against Omicron and demonstrated their high level 2-3 months after the revaccination.

Sputnik Light booster is expected to provide strong protection against infection, severe disease and hospitalization by Omicron. Sputnik Light booster is recommended to strengthen efficacy of vaccines against Omicron. Boosting by Sputnik Light can strengthen and lengthen the quickly waning efficacy of many vaccines in light of combined Delta and Omicron challenge.

Sputnik Light is a universal booster to other vaccines, including Sputnik V. In Argentina, a combination of Sputnik Light with other vaccines has demonstrated its effectiveness as a universal booster inducing stronger antibody and T-cell response compared to a two-shot homologous regimen. Sputnik V and Sputnik Light were developed on the basis of a safe and well-studied over 30 years technology and have not been associated with rare serious side effects as myocarditis or pericarditis.

The highest safety and efficacy of Sputnik V and Sputnik Light was demonstrated in more than 30 studies and real-world data publications from more than 10 countries.

Gamaleya National Research Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology and the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF, Russia’s sovereign wealth fund), investor in Sputnik V and Sputnik Light vaccines, announced an article “Sputnik Light booster after Sputnik V vaccination induces robust neutralizing antibody response to B.1.1.529 (Omicron) SARS-CoV-2 variant” has been published in medRxiv (the preprint server for health sciences) and is available at:

https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2021.12.17.21267976v1

The preliminary study by the Gamaleya Center has demonstrated that the Sputnik V vaccine and the one-shot Sputnik Light booster (based on human adenovirus serotype 26, the first component of Sputnik V) are effective against Omicron (B.1.1.529) variant of COVID, providing for better protection when compared to other vaccines. Heterologous boosting with Sputnik Light is the solution to increase other vaccines’ efficacy, including against Omicron, and extend the booster protection period.

Sputnik Light as a booster significantly increases virus neutralizing activity against Omicron based on sera 2-3 months after revaccination and is a universal booster to other vaccines inducing stronger antibody and T-cell response.

Sputnik Light booster is recommended to strengthen efficacy of vaccines against Omicron. Boosting by Sputnik Light as well as heterologous boosting can strengthen and lengthen the quickly waning efficacy of many vaccines in light of combined Delta and Omicron challenge.

Sputnik Light has already been registered in more than 25 countries as a standalone vaccine and a universal booster to other vaccines helping to increase their efficacy (including in Argentina, UAE, Bahrain, Philippines, and San Marino). Sputnik V has been authorized in 71 countries with total population of over 4 billion people.

Sputnik Light has already shown strong results used as a booster in mix & match trials in Argentina. A combination of Sputnik Light with vaccines produced by AstraZeneca, Sinopharm, Moderna and Cansino, conducted in 5 provinces (City and Province of Buenos Aires, as well as Córdoba, La Rioja and San Luis) has demonstrated that Sputnik Light induces stronger antibody and T-cell response as compared to homologous regimen (two shots of the same vaccine). Each “vaccine cocktail” combination with Sputnik Light provided higher antibody titer on the 14th day after administering a second dose when compared to original homogenous (same vaccine as first and second dose) regimens of each of the vaccines.

Sputnik Light efficacy data:

•Sputnik Light has been proven to be safe and highly effective by real-world vaccination data. In particular, data from the Ministry of Health of Buenos Aires (Argentina) has demonstrated standalone efficacy of Sputnik Light between 78.6-83.7% among the elderly (over 40,000 people of 60-79 years old), which is higher than that of many two-dose vaccines.

•Findings by the Gamaleya Center based on data collected in Moscow have demonstrated Sputnik Light vaccine administered standalone has 70% efficacy against infection from the Delta variant of coronavirus during the first three months after vaccination. The vaccine is 75% effective among subjects under the age of 60. Sputnik V and Sputnik Light are based on a safe and effective human adenoviral vector platform and have not been associated with rare serious adverse events following vaccination, such as myocarditis or pericarditis.

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