The fashion apparel and luxury goods industry has undergone remarkable changes over the past five years. From the pandemic-induced accelerated digitization of brands and the rapid growth of social commerce to the emergence of re-commerce and consumer preference for purchasing sustainable products, the industry has completely evolved.
However, one key step remains on the industry’s transformation journey: Integrating products into the digital value chain.
And this is where Certilogo plays a role. Founded in 2006, the Milan-based technology company is a pioneer in connected products. Its Digital ID, a web-based SaaS application, empowers brands by enabling individual product authentication. Already used by more than 80 brands, Certilogo’s platform is a game-changer as it has revolutionized a brand’s relationship with its customers – one built on trust, value and sustainability.
For consumers, a digitized product can be easily verified, opening the door for brands to offer a variety of engaging experiences while meeting sustainability goals and mitigating counterfeiting. As a result, the demand for digitized products is increasing. Certilogo has seen an average annual growth of 34% in the number of products the company has digitized over the past five years, accelerating to 54% growth in 2021. The company said consumers are three times more likely to join than five years ago.
Some of what sets Certilogo’s consumer web application apart from other solutions is its ease of use and integration capabilities. The web application enables brands to offer rapid authentication of genuine products with greater effectiveness in catching fake products than other solutions and an easy way to deliver relevant information, compelling content and innovative services, “at the moments that matter most, tailored to fit your style” and the brand’s tone of voice,” commented Michele Casucci, founder and CEO of Certilogo.
Certilogo creates an intimate and authentic connection between product, brand and consumer. This technology transforms the customer experience with the brand while strengthening brand trust and loyalty. Moreover, it creates a narrative that remains permanently associated with that product – whether it is resold or passed down from generation to generation, thereby increasing the value of that product.
Michele Casucci, Founder and CEO of Certilogo.
Additional benefits for brands include an affordable way to digitize products, essentially turning individual items into “secure smart assets” that are easily integrated into the omnichannel journey of connected customers and tracked throughout their circular product lifecycle.
Why does it matter? Imagine a luxury item, say a watch. When the watch is sold and leaves the store, that’s the last the brand will see of it. But with digital ID, analog products are digitized and transformed into a connected platform for authentication, engagement and services. “Intelligently connected brands gain the advantage of staying in constant contact with consumers and their products throughout the supply chain, in all distribution channels, from the point of sale to end-of-life product recovery,” said Casucci.
The value proposition for brands has another dimension. Certilogo technology enables brands to identify and connect unclonable physical products with unclonable digital products. Brands can offer consumers digital experiences with their purchases – such as event tickets or behind-the-scenes content. Or they can meta-port their purchases to wear in the metaverse. And ownership of NFTs could later be exchanged for access to purchase exclusive physical products. The possibilities are endless.
And in addition to a digitized and improved post-purchase experience, consumers are also protected from unknowingly purchasing fake products as they can instantly verify the authenticity of the product. Meanwhile, the brand benefits from crowdsourced product monitoring and can also use data generated from authentication to fight counterfeiters as well as control overproduction, gray market distribution and licensed products. It’s a win for brands and their customers as well as consumers in secondary markets.
It is noteworthy that the versatility of the Certilogo solution was not part of the original mission. “We originally set out to overcome the challenge of easily and reliably authenticating products, protecting consumers and reducing counterfeiting. As this technology has become an essential hygiene factor for connected product strategies, our mission has evolved to leverage this technology to help brands build the most trusted, engaging, measurable and sustainable relationships with consumers through their products. Enhancing the product’s ability to communicate, expand and create new value for brands and consumers, for example in product resale, where products that can be certified as authentic retain more value,” said Rossella Munafò, head of sales and marketing at Certilogo.
Another key part of the value proposition for brands and consumers is the role technology plays in terms of sustainability.
“Safe and verifiable connected products benefit the planet as well,” said Casucci. “Not only by helping to reduce the number of harmful counterfeit products, but by creating trust through transparent, traceable information about sustainability and making it easier to repair, sell and recycle the product, extending the life of the product and promoting greater circulation.”
Last fall, Certilogo published the results of a consumer survey that revealed the importance of offering sustainable products. Researchers at the company have found that product sustainability directly influences purchasing decisions. In its survey, Certilogo found that 70% of respondents “consider the sustainability of their purchases to be important or very important,” the report’s authors said.
The research also showed that 93% of consumers “find products that offer sustainable services useful, with 1 in 5 finding green certifications most useful.”
The report concluded that knowing that a product is authentic and legitimate is critical to consumers – especially younger generational cohorts such as Gen Z and Millennials. Additionally, these consumers consider product verification to be the most useful sustainability feature of connected products. The survey found that 70% of respondents “consider product verification to be the most important ‘green’ service.”
So, what’s next for the industry? And for Certilogo? Casucci sees limitless opportunities and challenges brands to create a bright and connected future. “While we don’t yet know exactly what the future of fashion will look like, we only have to look at what happened when the products of the music and film industries were digitized, or the way self-driving cars are predicted to revolutionize both. driving experience and the automotive industry itself to know that we should expect radical changes,” said Casucci. “Certilogo will enable brands to invent this future, and we are confident that it will include exciting experiences for consumers, new business opportunities for brands and will be much better for the planet. Given the urgent nature of climate change, speed is of the essence, so Certilogo aims to democratize connected product technology and accelerate its adoption. We do this by making the technology available and accessible to all brands regardless of their location, size or digital maturity.”
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