Gretchen Koback Pursel is the new chief people officer at the company formerly known as Saks Global.
European trade show adds smartwatches
As the market for so-called smartwatches continues to grow, Inhorgenta Munich, the jewelry and watch trade show held in Germany, announced that a number of smartwatch manufacturers and brands plan to exhibit at the next show.
Munich--As the market for so-called smartwatches continues to grow, Inhorgenta Munich, the jewelry and watch trade show held in Germany, announced that a number of smartwatch manufacturers and brands plan to exhibit at the next show.
In addition to representing the segment with booths at Inhorgenta, show organizers said that smartwatches and wearable technology will be covered in the seminar and events program to provide an extensive overview of the market.
The next Inhorgenta Munich show is scheduled to take place from Feb. 20 to 23, 2015.
The addition of this category to the show, an important trade event in Europe with more than 1,200 exhibitors, is an indication of the rising importance of smartwatches and wearable tech, especially in terms of its place in the jewelry industry.
According to research firm Canalys, more than 17 million wearable bands, which includes both smartwatches and interactive fitness bands such as the “Fitbit,” are predicted to ship in 2014, and the company said that it believes that this will be the year that the wearables will become a “key consumer technology.”
RELATED CONTENT: 5 facts about Apple Watch
One of the biggest pieces of news in the category came just this week, when Apple unveiled its first smartwatch, which it is just calling Apple Watch. Apple joins a number of tech companies already in the smartwatch arena, including Samsung, Microsoft, Motorola and Android.
Early rumors about Apple’s smartwatch had some financial and market analysts speculating that global sales of what many thought would be called the iWatch would reach 10 to 15 million units in 2014, and could increase to 50 to 75 million next year. Tuesday’s announcement by Apple, however, included the revelation that the tech giant won’t begin selling its timepiece until 2015.
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