In what is sure to boost Fossil’s foray into wearables to soaring heights, Misfit has today announced that the company has agreed to an acquisition offer by Fossil Group for $260 million. Fossil Group is now planning to begin incorporating Misfit’s technology into products resembling traditional watches from next year.
The company is expecting the acquisition deal to close before the end of fiscal 2015. The purchase price of $260 million will be funded through a combination of cash on hand and bank debt.
After the acquisition, Sonny Vu, co-founder and CEO of Misfit Wearables will serve as the President and Chief Technology Officer of connected devices for Fossil Group and will be a member of the company’s executive leadership team.
Misfit is the maker of popular fitness trackers like Misfit Shine and Misfit Flash. The company recently launched the successor of the Shine, dubbed as Misfit Shine 2.
The products from the company are usually sleek and of good build quality, even though they are inexpensive compared to other similar products in the market.
Along with the fitness tracking products, the company also forayed into smarthome products with the launch of Misfit Bolt – a smart bulb which can be controlled via smartphone and a sleep monitor.
Earlier this week, TAG Heuer launched its smartwatch, which is powered by Intel and runs on Android Wear.
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.
