Fossil is officially joining with PUMA to create branded wearables including watches and smartwatches. As Fossil is already well-versed in creating these types of devices it bodes well for PUMA who will eventually be offering consumers an option for a more active-focused wearable. The partnership will be a ten-year contract and continue through 2028, meaning there are likely to be quite a few PUMA-branded smartwatches to look out for in the future. The official announcement about the deal between the two companies only mentions watches and smartwatches but does not mention what will launch first. It does however note that there will be products launching in 2019 so there will still be some time before consumers can get their hands on anything.
Though neither Fossil nor PUMA detail anything in regards to how many products there will be as part of the deal the partnership refers to a “watch collection” so there will more than likely be quite a few options to choose from, and Fossil is no stranger to creating plenty of wearables both in the smartwatch and hybrid watch categories. PUMA is just the latest company to join forces with Fossil as other brands have already reached deals to have watches launched under the Fossil name with their own branding. The DIESEL On Full Guard smartwatch running Wear OS is just one example, but other watches running on the OS from Tommy Hilfiger and others are also launched under Fossil Group.
When the products begin launching they’ll be available through a range of different methods including online retail websites, physical department stores, and specialty retailers according to the announcement. No specifics were given at this time, though, about which retailers or websites would be selling the products. It’s unclear if any of the PUMA products would be wearables that are more akin to fitness trackers, but as a sports brand it would make sense for those types of devices to be included alongside the watches and smartwatches.