Mall favourite Fossil struggles within the period of the smartwatch

For shoppers of a certain age, Fossil Group was a shopping mall fixture — with its leather belts, handbags, and of course, quartz watches sold in collectible tins.

The fashion watch and accessories company was remarkably successful for decades, from its founding in 1984 until just a few years after Apple introduced the Apple Watch.

And now it is struggling, as sales in the watch market become increasingly split between high-end mechanical timepieces from most Swiss makers on the one hand, and smartwatches on the other.

Fossil is trying to trim its operations, develop new products and expand into new markets, especially China and India.

It clearly has plans to survive and thinks its total addressable market will grow. But it could be a tough battle.