Textile South Asia

TrusTrace, a global SaaS company with a market-leading platform for supply chain traceability and compliance in fashion and retail, today announced the launch of its third playbook entitled, “Unlocking DPP: The Why, What and How of Digital Product Passports.” Unveiled at the Global Fashion Summit in Copenhagen, the playbook offers an essential guide for fashion industry professionals grappling with the data collection and implementation of the widely anticipated Digital Product Passport, which will come into force in the European Union between 2026-2030. The book busts some common myths and misconceptions about the DPP and offers a data protocol for brands to follow to start collecting DPP data and setting up their digital systems for DPP implementation.

Nicolaj Reffstrup, Co-Founder of GANNI, who provided key insights for the playbook, encourages brands to act now: “Digital Product Passports and corresponding legislation are coming for the industry – that’s something we should all be pleased about. We see it as an opportunity to heighten the level of information and transparency we offer consumers about products, but also as an opportunity to manage product data more efficiently, with the product afterlife in mind. It’s easy to see the hurdles and uncertainties, but we should all be excited about the data shift that will happen in the coming years. The quicker you prepare for compliance, the smoother the transition will be for you and your customer group. This guide is a great resource to get started on that journey and navigate the current uncertainties of legislation.”

By reading the guide, brands will gain:

• A clear understanding of what the DPP is, why it’s set to become an essential part of business as usual, how it will work and when it will come into force.
• Who and what is in scope for DPP, and guidance on how to prepare for it.
• An overview of the data protocol to enable textile-specific product DPP data collection.
• Useful first hand lessons from an end-to-end live DPP pilot for fashion products.
• Expert insights to help guide pragmatic, senior level action on beginning DPP preparation.
• An understanding of business opportunities that can be achieved with the DPP beyond simply a requirement to comply.

TrusTrace CEO and Co-Founder Shameek Ghosh comments : “As the industry shifts from minimal regulation to a significant surge in both the volume and intricacy of global laws, it’s clear that the potential for it to become overwhelming is palpable. The DPP is no exception, as its extensive data demands on a per-product basis will necessitate gathering and validating data that has historically been hard to access. Nevertheless, true visionaries can look beyond the immediate disruptions and challenges and recognize the potential this data holds. The possession of detailed supply chain data empowers brands to adopt a proactive stance, enabling them to maintain control rather than being caught off guard by the inevitable disruptions. DPPs serve as a critical element in constructing the data, insights, and infrastructure necessary to drive a truly circular economy, as well as unlocking novel business opportunities, but how to effectively create and implement them is not clear today. This is what we are aiming to clarify in this book.”

The guide, which has been authored by respected journalist Brooke Roberts-Islam, opens with ‘The Why’ of the DPP, breaking down the complex set of incoming EU legislation, and explaining why DPP is an essential tool for achieving the EU’s legally-binding commitment to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Crucially, the guide highlights the significant data gaps and how the DPP will address these by collecting and sharing circularity data.

‘The What’ section explains the three core components of the DPP: product data, unique identifiers and the required interoperable IT system (for decentralized data sharing). This section also offers a breakdown of who and what is in scope, along with the required data systems. ‘The When’ offers all brands an essential overview of the DPP timeline and requirements for textile products under the ESPR.

Finally, ‘The How’ provides brands with the essential steps to successfully collect data and implement a DPP scheme. The valuable insights in this chapter are derived from the pioneering Trace4Value project, a live DPP pilot led by TrusTrace to test an end-to-end DPP data and system infrastructure for textile products entering the EU market. The pilot cohort embedded DPP carriers with live data into selected Kappahl and Marimekko products, which launched on the market in early 2024.

Commenting on the Trace4Value project, Sandra Roos, Vice President of Sustainability at Kappahl states: “The operational components and requirements of the DPP are poorly understood, which is why we joined the Trace4Value project. We learned invaluable insights – such as the need for DPP data fields shown to consumers to be standardized – among many others, and we’re proud to provide our perspective for this playbook, to contribute to making it a comprehensive resource on what’s required for compliance with incoming DPP legislation.”

Marimekko also highlights potential customer and commercial benefits of DPP: “In the future, DPP has potential to create customer value as a part of product storytelling and life cycle,” says Marjut Lovio, Marimekko Sustainability Manager who has shared her sustainability and information technology perspectives within the playbook. “We believe this guide can help the industry in moving towards circular business models.”