Gerald Ratner, the businessman known for leaving his family jewelry company after criticizing its products publicly, is reportedly in talks to buy Signet’s U.K. chains, H. Samuel and Ernest Jones. This was reported by the Daily Mail.
Ratner, 75, is said to have support from investors, including British banks. The newspaper also said he hopes to become chairman if the deal goes through. However, the price has not been agreed upon yet, and sources said there is no guarantee the deal will happen.
Ratner did not comment directly to JCK, but he shared the news on his LinkedIn page with the message, “Everything that goes around, comes around.”
This is not the first time Ratner has shown interest in buying back his old business. In 2007, he told an audience that he made a bid of 350 million pounds for Signet’s U.K. division. That bid was rejected.
Ratner’s departure from the jewelry industry is well known and often told by him in interviews and motivational speeches, sometimes with a surprising sense of humor.
By 1987, Ratner had grown his family jewelry company significantly. He had bought the U.K. chain Ernest Jones and the U.S. chain Sterling Jewelers, which had 117 stores at the time.
In 1991, Ratner made headlines when he joked about his company’s products during a speech at the Royal Albert Hall for the Institute of Directors.
He said, “We do this nice sherry decanter that’s cut glass. It really only costs 4 pounds, 95 pence. People ask me, ‘How could you sell this for such a low price?’ I say because, ‘It’s total crap.’”
He continued, “We even sell a pair of earrings for under a pound, gold earrings as well. Some people say, ‘That’s cheaper than a prawn sandwich from Marks & Spencer.’ But I have to say the sandwich would probably last longer than the earrings.”
The audience laughed and applauded, but the press reacted harshly. U.K. tabloids criticized him for insulting his own customers.
Later, Ratner told the BBC that the media coverage was very unfair. “I made one joke about a sherry decanter. It was terrible judgment on my part. It totally backfired,” he said.
He described the experience as painful. “It felt like knives being stabbed into your stomach. This whole business that I built up was my baby. I was so proud of it. I was dragged through the gutter. Everyone believed everything we sold was crap,” he said.
Although Ratner apologized, sales dropped sharply. He eventually left the company and went through a seven-year depression.
The Ratners Group changed its name to Signet, and Ratners Jewelers became H. Samuel.
Since then, Ratner has tried various business ventures. These include a successful chain of health clubs. In 2003, he started an online jewelry business called Gerald Online, which has since closed.
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