DKNY unveils smartwatch

DKNY has debuted the DKNY Minute, the first piece of wearable technology from the brand. The watch is officially scheduled to launch Holiday 2017, and is one of the many pieces from Fossil launching at Baselworld this week.

The women's watch features a rose gold finish with a black watch face, complete with the signature white DKNY logo, gold watch hands and white indices around the dial.

The watch will also come with interchangeable black and red straps, both featuring a rose gold finish buckle. There is also the option of silver, gold or rose gold faces.

The DKNY Minute is a hybrid smartwatch meant to sync with smartphones, track daily movement, provide a dual time zone screen and track sleep. The watch is powered by a coin cell battery which can last up to four months of use.

There is no touch screen, but, rather, the watch will track activity and send data to I-phones and Androids via Bluetooth. It will also vibrate to alert the wearer of calls, text messages and app notifications.

The timepiece is accessibly priced with a price point between 155 and 175 dollars.

DKNY took a sensible approach to the price point, as the smartwatch market is dominated by low-cost watches such as Fitbit.

Given the brand's recent struggles to make a turn around, after creative directors Dao-Yi Chow and Maxwell Osborne, who are also the designers of Public School, stepped down from their posts, DKNY needs to figure out what to do to turn a profit fast.

Last year, the struggling brand was also sold to GIII Apparel Group after being one of LVMH's most underperforming brands of the year.

The new approach to the accessories category could be the first step towards making a turnaround.

Image via: 4K HiTech di Paolo Guala Facebook