Gemvara, which several years ago was one of Boston’s high-flying consumer tech startups, has been acquired by Richline Group, a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary.
Terms weren’t disclosed in a press release announcing the deal. The news was first reported by BostInno.
Gemvara got started in 2006 as Paragon Lake, and its original business enabled shoppers to design custom jewelry on computer kiosks located in retail outlets. It later switched to selling custom jewelry on its website. The company mined more than $51 million in venture capital, making it one of the biggest technology startup bets in Boston.
Gemvara is profitable and booked more than $15 million in revenue last year, CEO Matt Nichols told BostInno. An undisclosed number of Gemvara employees were let go as a result of the acquisition, BostInno reported.
Richline Group, which manufactures and markets fine jewelry, snapped up Gemvara for its e-commerce platform and customization tech, according to the press release. And with Richline’s resources at its disposal, Gemvara should be able to grow faster and introduce new designs more quickly, Gemvara president Jon Blotner said in the release.
Gemvara was founded by Jason Reuben and Matt Lauzon when they were undergraduate students at Babson College. Lauzon led the company for several years until departing in 2012. He formed Dunwello the following year, a website for finding and recommending local professional service providers. That venture shut down in February. Lauzon has since moved to Portland, ME, where he is head of product at X2X Community, according to his LinkedIn profile.
