Garmin to buy Raymarine, really?
This morning the Sunday Telegraph is reporting (link dicey, here’s alternate) that Garmin is the mystery bidder known to have approached Raymarine in late February. I’m fairly surprised, but what do I know! It seems to me that Garmin is competing well against Raymarine, at least on the lower side of the market (while Furuno comes on strong, particularly on the high side and if it can get product out the door). But it’s also obvious that Garmin is making a big play for the dealer/installer and boat builder business that it’s never done well with, but where Raymarine excels. On the other hand, don’t the Garmin and Raymarine product lines overlap a great deal? Or am I seeing the trees, not the forest? And what would this buyout mean for us consumers; might Garmin eventually dominate marine electronics to a detrimental degree?
But note that even if this report—based on “sources close to the deal”—is true, it is not a done deal, and the Telegraph adds that “A number of private equity companies are also thought to be eyeing Raymarine.” Ray has its annual meeting this coming Friday, and maybe we’ll all know more after that. Your thoughts?
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