Friday, 13 November 2015

Fossil Group acquires wearable maker Misfit for $260 million


Watchmaker Fossil Group has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Misfit Inc., which creates various wearable and sleep trackers in addition to a health-tracking platform, for $260 million.

Sonny Vu, CEO of Misfit, will serve as president and chief technology officer of connected devices for Fossil Group, Inc., and will be a member of the company’s executive leadership team.

Fossil Group expects the acquisition to close before the end of fiscal 2015. The purchase price of $260 million, including transaction costs, will be funded through a combination of cash on hand and bank debt.

According to Fossil, the acquisition will enable the company to:
  • Own a technology platform that has already solved many of the hardest problems in wearables, including battery life.
  • Scale Misfit’s technology across Fossil, Skagen and a targeted portion of its portfolio of 16 brands in 2016, ultimately accelerating the company’s connected accessory roadmap.
  • Expand its addressable market with new distribution channels, new products, new brands and new enterprise partnerships, including music, fitness, healthcare and digital entities.
  • Lead in the connected devices space by harnessing the power of a world-class software and hardware engineering team spearheaded by Misfit Founder, Sonny Vu.
The announcement comes just weeks after Fossil introduced its Q Series of smart wearables. With the acquisition of Misfit, Fossil aims to expand its product offerings from traditional timepieces to connected wearable devices.

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