"Watch" This...

Fossil, the largest watchmaker in the USA, is an excellent example of a company with a winning business concept. Founder Tom Kartsotis was only about 23 years old when he made a trip to Hong Kong in 1984 to research the idea of an import-export business. During his travels, he visited a factory that made wristwatches for $35 just like the ones that were being sold in Europe for $150.

Tom returned from the Far East and tested three lines of watches in the US market. The best-selling line turned out to be a collection of retro-looking watches similar to those made in the 1950s. Dropping the two lines that didn’t sell, Tom and his brother Kosta dubbed their new “classic” watch collection Fossil, a nickname they had for their father.

When Tom and Kosta launched Fossil, Inc. (www.fossil.com) in 1986, the market was dominated by modern-looking watches sold by well-known companies such as Swatch and Guess. But it was the right time for a new concept in timepieces. Customers loved the throwback styles offered by Fossil and the watches sold like lightening. A few years later, the brothers began packaging Fossil watches in decorated tin boxes, which became collector’s items and furthered their product’s retro image.

The company went public on the NASDAQ in 1993 for $70 million and is now worth well over $1 billion. Click this link to read more about how Fossil, Inc. grew from a tiny company in a garage office to a major corporation that sells accessory products under multiple brand names in over 80 countries around the world: www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/jan2006/id20060118_689477.htm. To help you glean important points from this article, we have prepared a note sheet on Fossil, Inc. Click the link below to download this note sheet. If you are taking this course for a grade or for credit, you will turn in this assignment to your advisor or teacher.

Click Here to download Worksheet 11:
Notes on Fossil's Winning Business Concept

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