Clothing’s digital ID card

Imagine you find a pair of jeans in your favorite store. Imagine those jeans have a unique serial number given to them at the time of manufacture. They are born in the digital world. You reach for your smartphone, scan the digital ID found on the label, and learn about where the jeans were made, read consumer reviews and see if your size is available in the store. The circle closes after the purchase, when you can submit your own review, gain loyalty points and receive brand content tailored to your preferences.

The future is already here. Avery Dennison’s Janela technology, powered by the Evrythng Smart Products Platform, tracks each of these consumer interactions to provide brand and retail partners with valuable data and analytics.

‘With the smartphone becoming the remote control for the physical world, Janela transforms the 1:1 conversation between the brand and the consumer by merging the physical product to the digital interaction, providing a new frontier for brand dialogue and personalization,’ says Kim Schneider, senior director of Technology Solutions, Avery Dennison RBIS. ‘This unique relationship between Avery Dennison’s hardware, data and world-class manufacturing and Evrythng’s IoT software technology represents a truly industrial-scale digital enablement of everyday products. Moreover, Janela enables apparel and footwear brands to easily deliver digital applications with their physical products.

"With the smartphone becoming the remote control for the physical world, Janela transforms the conversation between the brand and the consumer."

‘The Janela Smart Products Platform helps apparel and footwear brands digitize their products to drive consumer engagement. By marking apparel and footwear products with a unique, serialized identity which then connects to Evrythng’s IoT cloud-based software, Janela creates the ability for brands and retailers to capture real-time data, enhance consumer experiences, and drive proactive marketing campaigns unique to every product and consumer. This “digital identity” also enables product registration, supports returns and reorders, and facilitates brand protection and product authentication. Through this and more, Janela makes the manufacturing and selling of products more efficient and intelligent.

‘Through data capture, Janela also offers brands the opportunity to customize content and drive ongoing engagement. Janela gives brands the ability to tell their story, share transparent information like where a product is made and who made it, and encourage brand loyalty through offers, discounts, points and new products. Brands can also develop organic, customizable content on the platform to keep consumers engaged.’

Personalized relationship

One of the first brands to adopt the digital identity technology on a large scale is Ralph Lauren Corporation (RLC). The company has already applied it to tens of millions of products, starting with the Polo brand.

Ralph Lauren’s Digital Product IDs give consumers the reassurance of authenticity paired with a connected product experience. By scanning the product label with a smartphone, consumers can also learn about the product detail and receive styling tips and recommendations. New features are continually being explored to unlock the full potential of this technology and build a stronger, more personalized relationship between RLC and its consumers.

‘The launch of Digital Product IDs demonstrates how we continue to use technology to deliver more for our consumers and ensure the integrity of our products throughout their lifecycle,’ says David Lauren, chief innovation officer at RLC. ‘The application of this technology means every Polo product will be “born digital” which represents a new milestone in data intelligence innovation in our sector.’

In addition to authentication, creating unique digital identities for each product enables a variety of applications, including increased connectivity for consumers who can scan the QR code to receive additional product details and styling recommendations. Across the supply chain, the IDs enable real-time visibility to track products from the point of manufacture and improve inventory management.’

‘While we cannot disclose the specifics at this time, Janela creates greater sales and engagement with consumers by delivering a seamless and customizable experience for users,’ adds Schneider. ‘The implementation of this technology will also give retailers and brands a more targeted and personalized approach to reach their customers. The application of IoT is increasingly expanding and with a projected worth of 14.4 trillion USD by 2020. IoT represents a business opportunity which can provide companies with a distinct competitive advantage.’

Niall Murphy, CEO and co-founder at Evrythng, adds: ‘The fact that at least 10 billion Avery Dennison RBIS products will be digitized at the point of manufacture is both a milestone in making the IoT mainstream and a huge enabler for the apparel and footwear industry. Avery Dennison works with some of the world’s largest and most respected consumer brands. Evrythng and Avery Dennison RBIS are enabling products for these brands to be “born digital” and create new value with IoT applications, which is a huge opportunity for the industry.’