Fossil Group has acquired the fitness wearable maker Misfit for US $260M and the acquisition will enable Fossil Group to offer consumers with both traditional timepieces & fashionable connected accessories. If you do not know, last month, Fossil launched the new range of connected fashionable accessories – the Q Grant, Q Dreamer, Q Reviewer and Q Founder while the Misfit unveiled Shine 2 fitness tracker and sleep monitor. The company said that the acquisition will help it expand and renew its product offerings.
Kosta Kartsotis, chief executive officer of Fossil Group, said:
“We have a significant opportunity to add technology and connectivity across our platform of watches and accessories. With the acquisition of Misfit, Fossil Group will be uniquely positioned to lead the convergence of style and technology and to become the fashion gateway to the high-growth wearable technology and connected device markets.”
Fossil Group expects that this acquisition will close before the end of fiscal year 2015 and the acquisition will include transactions costs. The transaction costs will be funded through a combination of cash on hand and bank debt. Sonny Vu 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 plans to scale Misfit’s technology across Skagen and a targeted portion of its portfolio of 16 brands in 2016.
