Blue Nile acquired by Bain Capital and Bow Street

[upgradingmama]

Just saw this come across my news feed... Any thoughts on how this will or won't impact the diamond industry?

http://www.forbes.com/sites/anthonydemarco/2016/11/07/blue-nile-to-be-acquired-by-bain-capital-and-bow-street-goes-private-q3-down-4-3/#533e1ec93f19

 

[realazy]

I don't see how taking the company private will impact the business on the consumer level. The private capital firms must have a business case for purchasing the company, which is usually to improve efficiency and margins.

The concerning numbers were the declining net sales numbers and the drop in operating margin. This net sales drop could potentially be attributed to a drop in diamond prices over the past year, but the drop in operating margin is more of a concern as they may be spending more to stay competitive.

Either way, Blue Nile is not going anywhere and companies tend to run more lean when they only have one shareholder to report to. We might see more innovation, but I predict the push will be for increasing presence outside of the US as that's where there's more growth potential.