Danish fashion group Bestseller, which owns brands such as Vero Moda, Only, Vila, Selected and Jack & Jones, plans to use blockchain technology to enable product traceability. With the investment, the company wants to ensure product safety on the one hand and react to expected EU requirements for digital product passports on the other.
Technology partner is the Indian start-up and Global Change Award winner 2020, TextileGenesis. The company has developed a web-based cloud solution specifically for the fashion industry to track fibers through the supply chain. Both partners have already successfully carried out several joint pilot projects. The collaboration is now to be expanded to ensure the traceability of cellulosic man-made fibers and direct-grown cotton throughout the Bestseller supply chain.
Seven percent of the products can be traced
Specifically, this year Bestseller will trace the fibers in around 25 million garments from the raw material to the end product. This already corresponds to around seven percent of the company’s total volume – a figure that is set to increase further in the coming years. “Through our cooperation with TextileGenesis we can ensure transparency and validation for a significant part of our fibers and products. The project feeds directly into our Fashion FWD strategy and will not only affect Bestseller, but can move the entire fashion industry in a more transparent and sustainable direction,” says Danique Lodewijks, Senior Project Specialist at Bestseller Sustainability.
Product traceability will soon be required by law
By 2024, it is expected that the EU will require every product to have a digital passport that contains information about the environmental performance of the product. TextileGenesis’ solution is designed to help Bestseller meet these requirements. “On some parameters we are certainly not far enough in the fashion industry when it comes to traceability of all our products, which will be a future requirement. Not even with bestsellers. On the other hand, with this collaboration we are taking a big step ahead of many others, as already this year we are able to track several million products from start to finish,” continues Lodewijks.
Creation of a digital twin
Traceability is about the ability to track all processes of a product – from sourcing of raw materials through spinning, weaving, dyeing, making up, consumption and disposal – and to obtain data on when, where and by whom the product was processed. TextileGenesis’ systems register and verify transactions between all of these processes, creating a digital twin (“Fibercoin”) of every kilogram of branded or certified material at source and tracking it throughout the textile value chain, eliminating PDF or paper-based traceability concepts required are. This prevents material from being double counted and reduces the risk of counterfeiting or fraud throughout the supply chain.
Monitoring of the entire supply chain
The implementation of the TextileGenesis technology required close collaboration between all stakeholders in a global team that involved and trained hundreds of suppliers in more than ten countries. They must implement and use the new platform. “The project requires a significant contribution from suppliers,” continued Bestseller. The companies now hope the platform will become an industry-wide tool, enabling them to deliver product transparency in line with expected EU legislation. Overall, TextileGenesis expects to roll out its solution to 400 to 500 suppliers at all levels.
“We will be gathering feedback from suppliers and with their input we aim to create a system that is both workable and scalable across the supply chain. If this solution works as intended, it would be a huge step forward for supply chain visibility,” says Pernille Bruun, Materials Manager at Bestseller Global Supply Chain. “With this platform, we can trace every step in the production process, giving us access to information we didn’t have before and enabling us to offer more transparency to our business and our customers,” she adds.