Idle Chatter On Fossil Watches -- Nothing About The Bakken -- May 10, 2017

Something I completely missed or had not thought much about.

Many years ago I did suggest that Fossil watches could be "challenged" by the ubiquitous nature of iPods, iPhones, and then iPads. That was before the advent of Apple Watches and other smart watches.

Once Apple Watches appeared it would be just that much more "challenging" for Fossil watches.

What I never thought of was collateral damage caused by the demise of "big box stores" and the decreased foot traffic in urban malls.

The Street shows just how badly this has turned for Fossil:

When a major department store closes a store, often Fossil (FOSL) loses a place to sell its watches. And that harsh reality of retail right now is really taking its toll on the watchmaker. 

After Tuesday's market close, Fossil reported a net loss of $1 a share for the period ended April 1, steeper than the loss of 27 cents a share analysts surveyed at Factset expected.

The company posted revenue of $581.8 million, lower than Wall Street's estimates for $591 million.

Shares of Fossil crashed as much as 16 percent in after-hours trading. 

In America, sales plunged 17 percent, while watch sales dropped 9 percent, leather items fell 21 percent and jewelry slipped 12 percent. In its retail business, same-store sales fell 11 percent.

The CEO tried to put a "smiley face" on these results but, as noted at the article, not everyone agreed.

Again, a note for investors: take a look at where products are being sold, not just disruptive technologies..

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