TexTrace AG, a pioneer in advanced technology for the apparel industry, has designed an innovative radio frequency identification (RFID) product authentication solution for renowned fashion company Vivienne Westwood.
Together with partner Eximia Srl, TexTrace delivers a unique solution that discreetly incorporates RFID technology into woven brand labels, offering secure protection with the genuine brand look and feel. In this way, TexTrace is providing Vivienne Westwood a complete approach to product authentication by focusing on the key elements of a leading-edge protection strategy:
— Source tagging at the point of manufacture protects assets throughout the channels.
— Encoding and shipping RFID labels direct to a retailer’s suppliers enables TexTrace to offer unique and encrypted encoding of the RFID label to enable authentication and prevent counterfeits.
— The TexTrace RFID brand label is an integral part of the product as opposed to a hangtag or care label.
A company’s brand is its most valuable asset, and brand protection is a growing problem worldwide. Beyond concerns about counterfeit products and shrinkage, today’s brand owners also are being impacted by significant brand devaluation due to an increase in grey market activity, where designer brands are sold at prices anywhere from 20 to 60 percent below market value.
As brand labels have been ruled to be legally part of a product, brand owners can take action against unauthorized resellers, even charging them with product tampering if needed. Garment care labels, however, are not considered part of the product by law, so RFID enabled care labels don’t offer the true brand protection provided by a brand label. The TexTrace woven RFID brand label allows items to be tracked throughout the supply chain, with easy authentication using standard RFID technology at the border and in the store.
“TexTrace offers the right mix of technology, textile expertise and reliability to deliver a woven RFID brand label that meets the exacting standards of the Vivienne Westwood brand,” said Nurben Usta, from the Vivienne Westwood production department. “We won’t sacrifice our brand for technology. TexTrace helped us imagine ways to use technology to enable a better distribution process and achieve the peace of mind that comes with authentication of our brand.”
“We are pleased to be the trusted supplier to Vivienne Westwood, integrating RFID into a quality woven label design that delivers brand protection from point of manufacture to point of sale and beyond,” said Sybille Korrodi, Head of Marketing and Business Development at TexTrace. “Based on our experience as a technology supplier to apparel brands and manufacturers, we have developed a reliable solution for brand authentication that is tailor made for the fashion industry.”
Vivienne Westwood RFID enabled brand labels will launch with the Spring 2016 man accessories line. While the initial phase of the RFID project is focused on product authentication, deployment for improving logistics and inventory management will soon follow.
For more information on RFID label, please visit
http://www.rfidhy.com/rfid/industry-and-logistics/hf-labels/
