Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. Bucherer Acquires Another US-Based Retailer: Baron & Leeds
After Tourneau in January, Bucherer continues its expansion in the US.
In January this year, Europe’s largest watch retailer announced the acquisition of US-based group Tourneau from Green Equity Investors IV LP, an investor group that owned Tourneau for decades. While this represented a first (and major) step in the American strategy of the Swiss retailer, the group didn’t stop there and yesterday, Tourneau’s parent company Bucherer USA announced it has purchased Baron & Leeds, another US retailer.
Baron & Leeds was founded in 2002 and operates four stores in California and Hawaii – two official Rolex boutiques and two eponymous stores. The Rolex boutiques are located at South Coast Plaza in California and at International Market Place in Honolulu. The two Baron & Leeds stores are based on Maui. Amongst the brands in its portfolio, Baron & Leeds is the official retailer for Rolex, Tudor, Patek Philippe as well as several jewellery brands.
Yesterday, Swiss company Bucherer, via its US-based subsidiary company Bucherer USA (which now manages Tourneau’s operations), announced the acquisition of Baron & Leeds for an undisclosed sum. Tourneau CEO Ira Melnitsky said: “The acquisition of one of the country’s leading retailers (…) represents an important step forward in the continued growth of Tourneau” and that the group will “be able to expand our customer relationships in both California and Hawaii.”
On its side, Bucherer Group CEO Guido Zumbühl said that “Baron & Leeds meets all of these criteria and we are excited to welcome them to the Bucherer family.” The group is now expanding its US-based activities and thus becomes one of the major global actors in the retailing world.
As a reminder, Bucherer is present in 35 locations in Europe – 15 stores in Switzerland, 11 stores in Germany, a boutique in Vienna, an immense store in Paris and a store in Copenhagen. With the acquisition of Tourneau, Bucherer now also benefits from 24 stores across the US. With its latest acquisition, the group will now operate a total of 63 stores.
Source: www.retail-insight-network.com.
