Signet Jewelers beefs up digital capabilities with ‘strategic acquisition’

Signet Jewelers Limited is acquiring a fast-growing and innovative e-commerce company.



Signet, whose banners include Kay Jewelers and Zales, said that it has agreed to acquire R2Net, owner of online jewelry retailer JamesAllen.com, for $328 million in an all cash transaction. R2Net also owns Segoma Imaging Technologies, a technology provider for the jewelry industry.



The acquisition will bring together Signet’s jewelry retail business with R2Net’s innovation capabilities and digital technology to create an enhanced customer shopping experience and accelerate Signet’s execution of its omnichannel strategy. It also adds a fast-growing online retail brand to Signet’s portfolio.



“This is a highly strategic acquisition for Signet," said Virginia C. Drosos, who took the reins as CEO of Signet in July. "The James Allen brand and R2Net’s technologies and innovative approach present a unique opportunity to rapidly enhance our digital capabilities and create a distinctive customer shopping experience which more seamlessly integrates our digital and physical retail platforms."



Following the closing of the deal, R2Net brands will be an independent division of Signet and its current leadership team will remain intact. Company co-founder and CEO Oded Edelman will continue to head the division and also will become Signet’s chief digital innovation advisor.



“We founded JamesAllen.com with a mission to offer beautiful rings, simplicity, selection, pricing transparency and overall value to consumers online,” said Edelman. "By joining forces with Signet, we believe we will be able to accelerate the growth of JamesAllen.com of JamesAllen.com and our adjacent R2Net businesses while continuing to build on our unique culture and technology. The Signet and R2Net teams have a shared belief that consumers deserve the best jewelry shopping experience and we look forward to continuing to build innovative technologies together to enhance the consumer experience across the Signet brand portfolio."



R2Net was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in New York City with global operations, including technology innovation centers, in Israel. The company’s technology includes what Signet called “proprietary 360° diamond display technology, virtual ring sizer and ring try-on mobile application.”



The transaction is currently expected to close in the third quarter of fiscal 2018 subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approval.



Signet operates approximately 3,600 stores primarily under the name brands of Kay Jewelers, Zales, Jared The Galleria Of Jewelry, H.Samuel, Ernest Jones, Peoples and Piercing Pagoda.