please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . learn how and when to remove these template messages this article needs additional citations for verification . please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . unsourced material may be challenged and removed . september 2010 learn how and when to remove this template message the topic of this article may not meet wikipedia s notability guidelines for companies and organizations . please help to establish notability by citing reliable secondary sources that are independent of the topic and provide significant coverage of it beyond its mere trivial mention . if notability can not be established the article is likely to be merged redirected or deleted . find sources ultra diamonds news newspapers books scholar jstor free images september 2010 learn how and when to remove this template message learn how and when to remove this template message ultra diamonds industry retailing founded 1991 gurnee illinois headquarters chicago il . key people daniel h marks president & ceo joseph donaghy evp and chief administration officer kristine land chief marketing officer mike bagul vp store operations products jewelry revenue 140 million usd february 2011 1 total assets 50 million july 2009 number of employees 1 500 july 2009 website www.ultradiamonds.com ultra diamonds is the fifth largest jewelry store chain in the united states and the largest seller of fine jewelry in factory outlet and value centers in the nation . ultra is a manufacturer and a direct importer of diamonds gemstones and gold jewelry . ultra operates 102 stores in outlet centers and through 38 other formats primarily licensed jewelry departments . 2 contents 1 history 2 bankruptcy 3 acquisition 4 transition 5 references 6 external links history edit ultra opened its first store in august 1991 in gurnee illinois . daniel h. marks founder president and ceo is a third generation jeweler with over 28 years of merchandising and jewelry experience . prior to founding ultra mr. marks was a principal with marks bros. jewelers whitehall lundstrom . 3 danny opened the doors on ultra stores with a philosophy of off market pricing in an attempt to generate a revenue base with a lowered profit margin . bankruptcy edit though market share grew from 1991 through 2006 a faltering economy struck the fine jewelry retailer and in 2009 ultra stores inc was one of over 80 other major retailers that filed chapter 11 . 4 bankruptcy . danny marks cited in the bankruptcy report a weak retail climate and a lack of liquidity as the case which forced ultra into chapter 11 . the claims were bolstered with the fiscal year end report for 2008 published in february 2009 showing a decrease of 10.8 % with an 18.9 % decrease over the critical holiday season . 5 however unlike some other companies that filed chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2009 ultra emerged from the three month bankruptcy with a strengthened capital base . this was accomplished when bank of america provided a 30 million line of credit and crystal capital assumed 56 % ownership of ultra in exchange for the conversion of half of its debt into equity . ultra s unsecured creditors will hold an 18 % ownership share in the jewelry chain plus a 3 million note . as well as all of these measures the ultra s management team took salary cuts while assuming a 26 % ownership interest . 6 ultra did close 30 underperforming locations during the bankruptcy and still operates 178 locations . 7 acquisition edit on october 24 2012 signet jewelers announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire ultra stores from crystal financial llc . and its other stockholders for approximately 57 million in cash . signet will not assume any debt in connection with the acquisition . 8 on november 2 2012 signet jewelers announced that it has completed the acquisition of ultra stores from crystal financial llc and its other stockholders for approximately 57 million in cash . 9 transition edit signet plans to convert most of ultra s 140 stores to kay jewelers outlets . 10 references edit http www.signetjewelers.com sj pages financial news filings press releases ref 199 http www.signetjewelers.com sj pages financial news filings press releases ref 199 http www.ultradiamonds.com info.cfm show careers http www.costar.com news article costars retail news roundup apr 12 to 18 2009 111372 http www.costar.com news article.aspx id d68f7481404a1b098f28b14bb28119f7 http www.costar.com news article.aspx id d68f7481404a1b098f28b14bb28119f7 http www.luxist.com 2009 04 13 ultra diamonds files for bankruptcy http www.signetjewelers.com sj pages financial news filings press releases ref 198 http www.signetjewelers.com sj pages financial news filings press releases ref 199 http www.jckonline.com 2012 11 20 signet converting most ultra stores to kays external links edit companies portal chicago portal ultra diamonds retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title ultra 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