Pandora Alliance Increases China Reach
February 17, 15(IDEX Online News) – Pandora has signed a joint distribution agreement with Oracle Investment that will see a significant increase in its activities in China. The joint distribution of Pandora jewelry will remain in place until December 31, 2018 at which point Pandora will take over full distribution of its jewelry in China.
The company said that it plans to accelerate store roll-out, enhance its retail focus and make significant marketing investments in the Chinese market. Pandora jewelry has been available in China since 2011.
“China is a huge opportunity for Pandora. It is the largest jewelry market in the world, and our business there today is tiny,” said Pandora CEO Allan Leighton. “With this new collaboration with Oracle, we gain direct access to and control over this highly attractive market, which will enable us to ramp up our presence there significantly over the next few years.”
Oracle, a retail distribution company, is Pandora’s existing distributor in China. As part of the agreement, Pandora will purchase the majority of Oracle’s assets in China on July 1.
The initial payment to Oracle is expected to be approximately HK$120 million ($15.5 million), depending on the value of the assets at the time of the completion of the agreement. The total payment will be in the range of HK$200-HK$500 million ($25.8 million-$64.5 million).