AUCKLAND, NOVEMBER 23, 2017 — StretchSense Limited, New Zealand manufacturer of wearable sensing systems, today announced that it has completed negotiation for a call option agreement that allows its investor StartToday Co., Ltd. to selectively conduct full acquisition of StretchSense in the future.

StretchSense’s New Zealand operations, encompassing two sites in Auckland with over 130 employees, will continue operation across all departments, with further growth to be supported by the resources afforded by the acquirer.

Ben O’Brien, StretchSense CEO, says:  “This deal with StartToday is a great sign for New Zealand’s technology ecosystem. It proves it’s possible for a Kiwi technology company to build itself up from essentially nothing into a world-class operation capable of competing on the global stage.

“Our relationship with StartToday began because of our technology, but it’s the value of our people and Kiwi expertise that have led us to this point, as well as our compatibility with StartToday’s fantastic company culture.”

Recently placed seventh on the 2017 Deloitte Fast 50, StretchSense is one of New Zealand’s rising technology stars. This endorsement from StartToday is the next step in nurturing an innovation culture in New Zealand, developing the country’s technology sector and helping to create further opportunities in the future. StretchSense will continue to be a key part of New Zealand’s contribution to technology and innovation worldwide, leveraging the resources of StartToday to drive wearable technology forward.

StretchSense received a series of investments from StartToday in 2016 These investments helped StretchSense advance their stretch sensor technology to enable the ZozoSuit, announced yesterday by the Japanese fashion retailer. StartToday currently holds 39.9% ownership (fully diluted basis) of StretchSense, with today’s agreement securing its right to acquire 100% ownership should it choose to exercise the option.

The option price paid by StartToday for the proposed agreement is US$20 million. Should StartToday choose to exercise the option, it can acquire full ownership of StretchSense at a strike valuation of US$120 million, which equates to approximately US$72 million for the remaining 60.1% of the company. The option expires on September 30, 2018. The agreement is scheduled to be executed by the end of this month and is pending final approval by the New Zealand Overseas Investment Office.

Extract from this Medium article by Matt Black.

Tim Minchin is an Australian musician, comedian and actor. Last year he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Western Australia and asked to give some guidance to the students on things he had learnt travelling the world, being himself and his ideas on being a successful person.
For his speech he made a list of nine life lessons, to echo the nine lessons and carols of the traditional Christmas service. Some are simple and easy to achieve, some are harder and some will make you question your being and what you need to do to achieve a meaningful and successful life.