Samsonite is reportedly nearing a deal to buy luxury luggage maker Tumi in a takeover bid that could be valued at close to $2 billion.
The Wall Street Journal reported the deal could occur as soon as this week, citing people familiar with the matter. The exact terms of of the deal couldn’t be learned but the premium outlined by the WSJ was typical given Tumi’s market value of $1.4 billion.
A Tumi representative didn’t immediately respond to Fortune‘s request for comment.
Tumi (TUMI) was founded by former Peace Corps volunteer Charlie Clifford in 1975, initially a startup that imported leather bags from South America. It created its iconic line of black ballistic travel bags and business cases starting in 1983. Tumi has over 2,000 points of distribution across 75 countries, including company-owned stores and distribution through other retail partners. More than two-thirds of the company’s sales are derived from North America.
The company launched an IPO in April 2012, a debut that was well received by investors at the time. They awarded Tumi a far loftier premium than competitor Coach (COH), due to Tumi’s high price points.
If Samsonite were to buy Tumi, it would be scooping up a luxury brand that has posted consistently higher sales and profits. Sales growth, however, has slowed. It climbed 3.9% to $548 million in 2015, a deceleration from the 13% growth in 2014 and the 17% jump in 2013.
And while sales and profits have grown consistently and in general performed at or slightly above Wall Street’s expectations the past few years, the stock has had a ho-hum performance. Shares rose to $26.50 on the first day of trading but currently sit at around $20.
