Fashion Briefing: How Denim Tears is getting ahead of fashion’s digital product passport era

As digital product passports catch on in fashion, questions about their adoption and scalability and the industry’s readiness persist.

Miles Weddle, director of strategy and growth at Denim Tears, said that the company’s goal is to ensure customer trust when buying Denim Tears products as copycats create more sophisticated fakes.

Denim Tears’ products range from $150 sweatshirts to $825 for items in limited-edition collaborations, such as the Denim Tears x Levi’s jeans. And the items are popular on the resale market.

Over 70 brands have integrated Eon’s technology since 2020. They include Coachtopia by Coach, H&M, Outerknown, Pangaia, Chloé, Net-a-Porter and Nanushka. But the adoption of DPPs remains slow, particularly among smaller brands that may see them as expensive or unnecessary. Eon declined to share the typical cost.

Still, they offer clear benefits: With DPPs, brands can gather data on products, including their sale price, their sell-through rate, their sale location and even their condition. Brands can track how products are performing both in-store and in the resale market.

“This data pipeline between brands and resale platforms creates a level of collaboration that’s never been possible before,” said Natasha Franck, CEO of Eon.

Brands can also track customer engagement, like if a customer reordered a product, left a review or recommended the product to a friend. This customer interaction data adds another layer of insight that helps brands better understand their audience.

“The post-sale data allows us to optimize our offerings, create more personalized experiences for our customers and continuously improve what we do,” said Weddle. In a crowded marketplace, this kind of direct connection with consumers can be a significant differentiator.

While the technology offers huge potential, its widespread adoption will most likely be driven by regulatory changes. The European Union’s DPP legislation mandates that brands implement digital passports by 2027. Fashion is a priority sector under these regulations, but the implementation process will likely be complex, especially for global brands with diverse production systems. Many will need to overhaul their supply chains to meet compliance deadlines, and it won’t just be EU-based brands. 

“It will become challenging for brands to limit this to products intended for Europe,” said Paul Foley, head of brand protection at StockX. “It will be easier for them to implement DPPs on all their global products. Even though it’s being driven by the E.U., the impact will be felt worldwide.”

Will the fashion NFT market come back?

This week’s Bitcoin price surge, past $100,000, could signal a resurgence in digital assets, but the excitement surrounding NFTs has waned. Nike’s decision to close its web3-based company, RTFKT, announced on Tuesday, underscores the skepticism many brands now have regarding the long-term value of digital-only ventures. RTFKT’s final collection will be released in January.

On Friday, social lifestyle app Stepn Go launched its third collaboration with Adidas, showing that some brands are pushing forward. The app’s users earn rewards including virtual sneakers for exercising outdoors. Adidas is selling its physical Ultraboost 5 sneakers via a raffle open to its Steppn Go x Adidas NFT holders on the MOOAR NFT marketplace. “This collaboration not only brings a fresh way to engage with fitness, but it also introduces rewarding experiences that push the boundaries of what’s possible in both the physical and digital worlds,” said Erika Wykes-Sneyd, vp and gm of Adidas Three Stripes Studio. The NFT provides owners with exclusive access to limited-edition products and real-world events and participation in raffles for physical sneakers tied to digital assets.

Shiti Manghani, CEO of Stepn Go, said the true potential of NFTs lies in their utility. “We’ve used NFT as a ledger of contract, which is what it was meant to be,” she said.

But a lot of brands’ NFT projects have been misdirected. According to insider sources, RTFKT was siloed from the main Nike operations, limiting its potential. “There’s a mismatch in brands’ expectations and what NFTs can do. … A lot of times, these big brands have their web2 businesses to run, and they rely [too much] on their web3 partners to execute the technology, the product and the web3 community site really well,” Manghani said.

Executive moves

• Richemont appointed Laurent Perves as CEO of Vacheron Constantin and Jérôme Lambert as CEO of Jaeger-LeCoultre, both effective January 1, following a series of leadership shifts within its luxury watch and jewelry brands.
• PVH Corp. has promoted Donald Kohler to CEO of its Americas division, overseeing both Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger businesses in the region and reporting to CEO Stefan Larsson. This comes as Calvin Klein plans to open a new flagship store in New York City next year, following the launch of its Paris flagship in June.
• Joseph Altuzarra has been appointed CEO of his eponymous brand, replacing Shira Sue Carmi, and will focus on creative leadership and global expansion, while Marta Lastra takes on day-to-day operations. The shifts follow an October investment from U.S. firm P180 to boost the brand’s e-commerce strategy.

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