Gitanjali Gems acquires US-based Samuels Jewelers

India based gems and jewellery major Gitanjali Gems has acquired the US-based Samuels Jewellers. This is the first acquisition of its kind for an Indian firm in the retailing space.

The deal is worth around Rs 200 crore as Gitanjali has acquired 97 per cent in the US specialty retailer from DDJ Capital Management LLC.

Samuels Jewellers operates 97 stores in 19 states with revenues of $100 million. Gitanjali would be funding this acquisition through internal accruals and proceeds of the recently concluded $110 million FCCB.

Gitanjali group chairman Mehul Choksi spoke on this investment: “In the Rs 200 crore investment, Rs 100 crore would be used for buying the stake and the rest would be utilized for expanding Samuels and replacing the stock.”

He further said: “US forms 35 per cent of the world’s gem market. Samuel has the capacity to grow by 100 stores under the same management and we want to improve the margins by 66 per cent from the current 47 per cent. As part of the global sourcing strategy, Samuel will directly source from manufacturers in India and China. We want to take Samuels to other parts of the globe including China, South East Asia and Europe.”

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