Gitanjali Set to Pay Nearly $33M for Italian Brands

Mehul Choksi

 We’re learning more about Gitanjali Group’s bid for five Italian brands.

Reuters reports that Mehul Choksi, Gitanjali chairman and managing director, is prepared to pay $32.7 million for the DIT Group (which owns four brands) and Valente and expects to reap $100 million from the acquisition in two years.

DIT is a unit of Dubai jewelry maker Damas International and owns the brands Stefan Hafner, IO Si, Porrati, and Nouvelle Bague. Meanwhile, Valente is owned by Mariella Burani Fashion Group.

Gitanjali Group, which trades in India under the name Gitanjali Gems Ltd., is India’s largest diamond jewelry manufacturer and retailer. Its business portfolio includes rough diamond sourcing, cutting, polishing, jewelry manufacture and distribution to its jewelry branding and retail operations. Its brands include Gili, Nakshatra, Asmi, Sangini, D’damas, Vivaaha and Giantti.

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Gitanjali Bids for Two Italian Jewelry Companies

Mehul Choksi

Gitanjali Group has made public the names of two Italian jewelry companies it plans to buy, Bloomberg BusinessWeek reports.

Mehul Choksi, chairman and managing director of Mumbai-India based company, said Friday that the company has placed bids for DIT Group and a company identified as “Valente.”

DIT Group, based in Valenza, operates four Italian brands that focus on contemporary luxury and Italian design. They are Stefan Hafner, Io Sì, Porrati and Nouvelle Bague.

Valente may be the former Valente Milano jewelry brand, known for high-design luxury jewelry. The company reportedly went out of business in April. However, its exclusive distributor in the U.S., Opera Jewels LLC, launched a line that debuted in Las Vegas in June, called “Opera Omnia,” with the Valente staff that is designed to stay true to the Valente style. I will try to verify if this is the brand that Gitanjali is bidding for.

At the end of August, JNN noted that Choksi told an Indian television network that he is finalizing a deal for an Italian brand, but refused to reveal the name of the company. It turns out now that it he was interested in two companies. He said at the time the idea is to market this brand’s products throughout the company’s growing international network, which includes the Samuels and Rogers jewelry chain in the U.S., more than 20 retail brands in India and retail outlets in the Middle East, China and Japan.

Gitanjali Group, which trades in India under the name Gitanjali Gems Ltd., is India’s largest diamond jewelry manufacturer and retailer. Its business portfolio includes rough diamond sourcing, cutting, polishing, jewelry manufacture and distribution to its jewelry branding and retail operations. Its brands include Gili, Nakshatra, Asmi, Sangini, D’damas, Vivaaha and Giantti.