Brands
Fossil unveils its most Tech-Packed Touchscreen Smartwatch to date
MUMBAI: It is with great excitement that Fossil brand announces its fourth generation of smartwatches under its Fossil Q line. With several new technology features, this new line provides consumers with the tech functionality they have been asking for in beautiful designs and styles they have come to expect from Fossil. With a robust list of new features, it is the brand’s intent to provide customers with one all-inclusive device—both in function and design.
As one of the first fashion brands to introduce this level of technology to their collection, Fossil shows consumers you don’t have to sacrifice fashion for function. Powered with Wear OS by Google and the Qualcomm® Snapdragon Wear™ 2100 Platform, the new devices offer enhancements to every facet of the day, with hardware including Heart-Rate Tracking, NFC, Untethered GPS and Swimproof Functionality. Thanks to optimized charge time, users can now charge their device within an hour to last all day.
Fossil entered the smartwatch market to fill the growing desire for tech that was beautifully designed and could be personalized. This new generation is no different: it is packed with the unique design traits allowing users to customize from strap to dial. There are 36+ exclusive dials, from fashion forward to novelty dials, and users can integrate an increasing number of third party apps to their device experience, as well as set social media photos as watch face backgrounds. Fossil is continuing to design smartwatches as only Fossil can, with a vintage-inspired approach to modern technology that lets customers find a watch that perfectly suits their authentic selves.
“Since our entry to the smartwatch market, it has always been our first priority to be nimble and adapt quickly to innovations-both in technology and design’’ says Steve Evans, EVP of Fossil. “We know a lot of watch wearers have both a traditional watch and some kind of an activity tracker— by adding significant features in terms of technology, without compromising our design standards, this new generation of smartwatch will provide consumers with one device that fits all of their needs. Ensuring the best possible experience for our customers has always been important, which drove the innovation of this product; we cannot wait to see the consumer response around the globe.’’
Called Fossil Q Venture HR and Fossil Q Explorist HR, these devices can transition through all parts of daily life thanks to added functionality packed into fashionable designs. This new generation of smartwatches ushers in a more holistic user experience from a Fossil smartwatch with key features and personalization options that consumers care about.
Brands
Rakesh Menon joins Paytm as avp – lending
Fintech product leader takes on new role after building digital lending, payments and credit products across fintech ecosystem
MUMBAI: Rakesh Menon has joined Paytm as assistant vice president – lending, taking on a new role focused on strengthening the company’s lending and credit products.
Prior to this, Menon worked at Profectus Capital Pvt Ltd as chief manager – payments based financing and digital lending.
At Profectus, he designed and launched digital credit products for merchants with variable cash flows, including overdraft-linked and revenue-share lending models. He led end-to-end LOS–LMS API integrations with payment partners and aggregators, enabling real-time underwriting, disbursal and repayment workflows.
He also worked on funnel optimisation initiatives using journey analytics, improving onboarding, KYC and disbursal conversion by 35 per cent. He developed ecosystem partnerships for transaction-data-based credit assessment and automated settlement systems, and collaborated with credit and data science teams to strengthen risk models and early delinquency detection.
Menon standardised partner onboarding and API frameworks, reducing go-live timelines by 40 per cent and improving digital scalability.
Before Profectus Capital, he worked at PayU as senior manager – presales lead – enterprise business from August 2022 to August 2023. He set up a national presales function for fintech and digital commerce clients, aligning solutions such as EMI, BNPL, BBPS and offer engines to merchant requirements.
He also helped improve conversion rates by around 15 per cent through merchant persona mapping, demo frameworks and structured sales playbooks, working closely with product and go-to-market teams.
From April 2019 to July 2022, Menon served as business unit head – SMB – direct acquisitions at Worldline, where he built the SMB online payments vertical from scratch. The business scaled to Rs 2,500 crore in annual transaction volume, growing at 45 per cent year-on-year.
During this period, he introduced paperless onboarding processes including eKYC and eSign, developed partner dashboards and CRM automation systems, and integrated platforms such as Shopify, WooCommerce and Tally to expand merchant adoption.
Across roles, Menon has worked across digital lending, payments and merchant financing, with experience in product development, ecosystem partnerships, API integrations and fintech-led growth strategies.
At Paytm, he will focus on scaling lending products and strengthening digital credit infrastructure within the company’s financial services ecosystem.
His appointment comes as fintech firms continue to expand their lending and embedded finance offerings in a competitive market.
