Luxi Group, a private holding company focused on the luxury goods market, has acquired certain assets related to Ashford.com  from Odimo Inc. Luxi Group said in a statement that it will re-launch Ashford.com with a large selection of designer and brand name watches and other competitively priced luxury products. Luxi group paid for $400,000 for the Web site and related copyrights and trademarks, according to a financial document filed by Odimo.

Luxi Group, New York City, is led by Internet retailing entrepreneur Eli Katz in partnership with the prominent Wechsler family, notable experts in the diamond and jewelry manufacturing trade.

One of the earliest luxury e-commerce sites on the Web, Ashford.com was launched in 1998. By 2001, Ashford led the online luxury market with revenues exceeding $65 million.

Katz will become president and chief executive officer of Ashford.com. He is currently the chief executive officer of The Inside Store, which he founded in 2004. In 1995, he founded iBeauty, one of the Internet’s earliest e-commerce sites, and following that was the CEO of HomeClick.com.

Luxi Group is the retail holding company for an international jewelry and diamond manufacturing concern led by the Wechsler family. Luxi Group also plans additional acquisitions in 2007.

“Ashford.com will epitomize Web 2.0 with a combination of e-commerce expertise and three generations with more than 60 years of experience in the jewelry and diamond manufacturing business,” Katz, said. “As Luxi re-launches this famous site, we ensure that the Ashford.com legacy remains intact while delivering a customer experience that exceeds expectations on every level. Ashford.com will be truly international, and with fulfillment operations in Europe and the U.S will capitalize on the growing European and Asian demand for luxury products.”

Online consumers will begin to see changes to Ashford.com in the coming weeks and will experience the entirely redesigned site within the next 60 days, the company said.

JCK