Garmin’s Marq Smartwatch Debut Expands ‘Reach’ to Category’s ‘Upper End,’ Says CEO
Garmin’s recent launch of its Marq line of smart “tool” watches “expands our reach to the upper end” of the smartwatch category, said CEO Cliff Pemble on a Q1 call Wednesday. “Where we’re at today is obviously not the upper…
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end of where watches are in total,” he said. “We feel very good about it. We’ve received high marks in terms of the design of the product and the materials we’ve selected.” Garmin is just starting “to deliver those devices into the field,” he said. “We’ll start to see some impact from that.” Introduced in mid-March, the six models in the Marq series range in price between $1,500 and $2,500. The fitness-tracker category also is moving “upmarket,” said Pemble. More consumers are adopting “high-end” trackers like Garmin’s $299 Vivomove HR with heart rate technology “as opposed to a basic tracker band,” he said. “Margins on high-end trackers are lower than those of basic bands, he said. “Depending on mix, of course, that impacts the overall segment margin.” The stock closed 6.6 percent lower Wednesday at $80.06.