Watchmaker Fossil announced a $260 million deal to acquire wearables company Misfit, with the buyer stating that “we have a significant opportunity to add technology and connectivity across our platform of watches and accessories”.

In a statement, Fossil said that the deal will enable it to “expand its addressable market, offering consumers both traditional timepieces and fashionable connected accessories”. It also noted that Misfit will bring it a “scalable cloud and app platform, a world-class software and hardware engineering team, a native wearable technology brand and a pipeline of innovative products”.

In a presentation, Fossil noted three addressable markets: alongside activity trackers and fully-fledged smartwatches, it noted the opportunity for “smarter watches” sitting between the two.

“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,” said Kosta Kartsotis, chief executive of Fossil.

The watch company said that its new unit has already addressed many issues in the wearable market, including battery life. The technology will be used across a “targeted portion” of its portfolio of 16 brands next year, accelerating its connected accessories roadmap.

While Misfit has focused on the smart accessories market with its Shine products, last year Fossil inked a partnership with Intel to address the same segment.

Sonny Vu, founder and CEO of Misfit, will serve as president and CTO of connected devices for Fossil.

The transaction is expected to close by the end of this year, subject to closing conditions.