Latest news with #Gemfields
Fashion Network
an hour ago
- Business
- Fashion Network
Gemfields sells Fabergé eggs maker for $50 million
Gemfields Group said on Monday it had sold Fabergé Ltd, the maker of the jewelled Fabergé eggs, to SMG Capital for 50 million dollars, as the coloured gemstones miner ramps up efforts to streamline its business. The sale concludes a review of the business started by Gemfields late last year. The group had bought the jeweller in 2012 to boost its gems business and use the brand name to promote its jewellery. Fabergé, which also makes luxury jewellery, watches and commissioned pieces, was founded by Gustav Fabergé in 1842, and is best known for the success of the 50 jewelled eggs commissioned by the Imperial Russian family from 1885 through to 1916. The Russian Revolution brought a violent end to the House of Fabergé, when the Bolsheviks seized workshops and closed down all production and the family fled. The business was relaunched in 2009 with its first collection since 1917. Gemfields on Monday said it would use proceeds from the deal for capital at its mining operations in Mozambique and Zambia.
Fashion Network
an hour ago
- Business
- Fashion Network
Gemfields sells Fabergé eggs maker for $50 million
Gemfields Group said on Monday it had sold Fabergé Ltd, the maker of the jewelled Fabergé eggs, to SMG Capital for 50 million dollars, as the coloured gemstones miner ramps up efforts to streamline its business. The sale concludes a review of the business started by Gemfields late last year. The group had bought the jeweller in 2012 to boost its gems business and use the brand name to promote its jewellery. Fabergé, which also makes luxury jewellery, watches and commissioned pieces, was founded by Gustav Fabergé in 1842, and is best known for the success of the 50 jewelled eggs commissioned by the Imperial Russian family from 1885 through to 1916. The Russian Revolution brought a violent end to the House of Fabergé, when the Bolsheviks seized workshops and closed down all production and the family fled. The business was relaunched in 2009 with its first collection since 1917. Gemfields on Monday said it would use proceeds from the deal for capital at its mining operations in Mozambique and Zambia.
The Independent
an hour ago
- Business
- The Independent
Luxury jewellery brand Faberge sold to tech investor for £37m
Luxury jewellery brand Faberge, well known for its jewelled Russian eggs, has been bought by a US tech investor for 50 million US dollars (£37 million). London-listed gemstone specialist Gemfields revealed on Monday that it sold the Faberge business to SMG Capital, the firm run by investor Sergei investment vehicle will pay an initial 45 million dollars when the deal completes later this month, before paying the further five million dollars through royalty payment instalments. The brand is particularly recognised for the extravagant eggs first made by jeweller Peter Carl Faberge in St Petersburg for Russian tsars as Easter gifts. Faberge now sells a raft of products including jewellery, watches and other 'egg objects' inspired by the famous eggs. Mr Mosunov said: 'It is a great honour for me to become the custodian of such an outstanding and globally recognised brand. 'Faberge's unique heritage, with ties to Russia, England, France and the USA, opens significant opportunities for further strengthening its position in the global luxury market and expanding its international presence. 'Faberge will continue to focus on jewellery, accessories and timepieces and we look forward immensely to providing exceptional service to Faberge's existing retail and wholesale customers, and to warmly welcoming new brand afficionados.' The sale comes after Gemfields kicked off a review process in December to consider a possible sale of the brand in a bid to shore up its finances. Sean Gilbertson, group chief executive of Gemfields, said: 'Having initiated our strategic review of Faberge in response to the considerable challenges Gemfields started facing in Q4 2024, today's sale marks the end of an era for us. 'Faberge has played a key role in raising the profile of the coloured gemstones mined by Gemfields and we will certainly miss its marketing leverage and star power. 'I extend our admiration and sincere thanks to the Faberge team for their fortitude and the progress they have delivered over the years.'
The Guardian
3 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Luxury jeweller Fabergé sold to tech investor in $50m deal
Fabergé, the jeweller famed for its imperial Russian Easter eggs, has been sold to a technology investor in a $50m (£37m) deal. Gemfields, which mines coloured gemstones in Africa, has agreed to sell Fabergé to SMG Capital, a US investment firm controlled by the tech backer Sergei Mosunov. The struggling miner, which bought Fabergé in 2013 for $142m from the private equity company Pallinghurst, put the company up for sale in December, when political unrest in Mozambique prompted it to temporarily freeze operations at its ruby mine. Fabergé, which was founded in 1882 by Peter Carl Fabergé, is one of the most renowned jewellers in the world but has come under pressure amid a downturn in the luxury goods market. It made revenues of $13.4m in 2024, down from $15.7m the previous year. Sean Gilbertson, the chief executive of Gemfields, described the deal as 'the end of an era'. He said: 'Fabergé has played a key role in raising the profile of the coloured gemstones mined by Gemfields and we will certainly miss its marketing leverage and star power.' Mosunov, a venture capitalist and startup investor, said it was a 'great honour … to become the custodian of such an outstanding and globally recognised brand'. Mosunov is a Russian national, based in the UK. 'Fabergé's unique heritage, with ties to Russia, England, France and the USA, opens significant opportunities for further strengthening its position in the global luxury market and expanding its international presence,' he said. Fabergé is best known for the ornate eggs it made for the Russian royal family before the 1917 revolution. The jeweller began making Imperial Easter eggs when Tsar Alexander III first commissioned them as a present for his wife, Tsarina Maria Feodorovna, in 1885. There are 50 Imperial Easter eggs in collections around the world. During the Russian revolution, the Bolsheviks seized the Fabergé workshops and closed down production. The family fled across Europe to Germany, Finland and Switzerland. The brand was revived under various iterations over the course of the 20th century, and was sold for $180m in 1984. Three years later it acquired the Elizabeth Arden brand for $700m. In 1989, the consumer goods group Unilever then bought Fabergé for $1.55bn. The brand was relaunched by the Fabergé family in 2009. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion While Fabergé is best known for its multimillion-pound Easter eggs, with a collection valued as high as £52m when auctioned in 2004, it has a number of other highly valued collector ranges, as well as lines of jewellery and watches. This spring the Castle Howard Fabergé range was put up for auction, an array of animal models carved from stones such as topaz and nephrite. Gemfields said it would use proceeds from the sale to help fund its mining operations in Mozambique and Zambia. Shares in the miner, which is dual-listed on London's junior stock market and Johannesburg's exchange, have fallen by about 70% from their peak in 2023, as the miner has struggled against over supply in the emerald market. In June the company told investors that the opening of a new mine in Mozambique had been delayed because of problems around illegal mining and work permits.
Reuters
5 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
Gemfields sells Fabergé eggs maker for $50 million
Aug 11 (Reuters) - Gemfields Group (GEMGE.L), opens new tab, said on Monday it had sold Fabergé Ltd, the maker of the jewelled Fabergé eggs, to SMG Capital for $50 million, as the coloured gemstones miner ramps up efforts to streamline its business. The sale concludes a review of the business started by Gemfields late last year. The group had bought the jeweller in 2012 to boost its gems business and use the brand name to promote its jewellery. Fabergé, which also makes luxury jewellery, watches and commissioned pieces, was founded by Gustav Fabergé in 1842, and is best known for the success of the 50 jewelled eggs commissioned by the Imperial Russian family from 1885 through to 1916. The Russian Revolution brought a violent end to the House of Fabergé, when the Bolsheviks seized workshops and closed down all production and the family fled. It was relaunched in 2009 with its first collection since 1917. Gemfields on Monday said it would use proceeds from the deal for capital at its mining operations in Mozambique and Zambia.
