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  • September 2016 (Revised January 2020)
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Pebble: Wearables Pioneer

By: David Yoffie and Allison Ciechanover
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:26
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Abstract

In the summer of 2016, wearables “wunderkind” and Pebble founder and CEO, Eric Migicovsky, was pleased with the young startup’s success in the five years since its founding. The Silicon Valley–based company had recently shipped its two millionth smartwatch; held the record for three of the four highest Kickstarter campaigns ever (raising cumulatively over $40 million on the site); launched its first non-watch product dubbed a “wearables game changer”; and enjoyed a loyal customer base, particularly among technology early adopters and the community of software developers that created applications and watch faces for its products. Nonetheless, the young company faced a variety of challenges. The nascent smartwatch industry recently saw a dramatic uptick in competition. Apple had introduced its smartwatch the prior year, other established technology companies such as Samsung and Motorola offered smartwatches, U.S.-based fitness tracker Fitbit had recently launched its first smartwatch, and Chinese firm Xiaomi was soon to release a low-priced smartwatch. Migicovsky considers an array of strategic options as he looks ahead.

Keywords

Competition; Strategy; Innovation Strategy; Product; Information Technology; Technological Innovation; Business Startups; Technology Industry; United States; California

Citation

Yoffie, David, and Allison Ciechanover. "Pebble: Wearables Pioneer." Harvard Business School Case 717-414, September 2016. (Revised January 2020.)
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About The Author

David B. Yoffie

Strategy
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Related Work

    • September 2016 (Revised January 2020)
    • Faculty Research

    Pebble: Wearables Pioneer

    By: David Yoffie and Allison Ciechanover
Related Work
  • Pebble: Wearables Pioneer By: David Yoffie and Allison Ciechanover
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