Latest news with #EcodesignforSustainableProductsRegulation
Web Release
a day ago
- Business
- Web Release
Digital product passports could double fashion products' lifetime value – with consumers reaping the rewards
The economics of fashion resale is set to be reshaped by upcoming EU regulation, with a potential doubling of lifetime product value, and up to 65% of the gains delivered to consumers, research from Bain & Company and eBay, reveals today. The findings point to a transformative opportunity for brands to redefine the value chain around transparency, trust, and circularity – far beyond the immediate goal of regulatory compliance. As Digital Product Passports (DPPs) become mandatory for textiles from 2026 under the EU's Ecodesign Regulation, today's report shows these are not just a regulatory tool but a commercial opportunity. For example, a fashion item sold for £500 today could generate an additional £500 in resale and services when supported by a DPP, by improving trust, traceability and ease of resale. While resale platforms, brands and verification services benefit too, consumers gain the most. Many brands – around 90% of those surveyed by Bain – currently view DPPs primarily as a regulatory burden. But today's research encourages companies to reframe DPPs as a strategic investment capable of generating ongoing revenue, driving sustainability, and strengthening consumer relationships. 'DPPs are more than just checking a compliance box. They are a foundational shift in how value is created, captured, and sustained over a product's lifetime,' said Aaron Cheris, partner in Bain & Company's Retail and Customer Strategy & Marketing practices. 'Brands that act early can build a more direct, data-rich relationship with consumers, tapping into resale trends and personalizing services in powerful new ways.' DPPs are standardized digital records, accessible via QR codes, NFC, blockchain or similar technologies, and contain detailed information about a product's materials, components, origin, environmental footprint, and lifecycle. Designed to support sustainability, circular economy initiatives, and greater transparency, DPPs enable consumers, businesses, and regulators to trace and assess products throughout their lifecycle. Regulation meets opportunity Under the EU's forthcoming Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), nearly every physical product sold in the EU will require a DPP by 2030 – yet 90% of brands still see this as a compliance burden, rather than a growth lever. The Bain and eBay report urges brands to shift perspective, urging that, rather than being 'red tape', DPPs should be regarded as revenue tools. DPPs will unlock lifetime value beyond the original point of sale, support circularity, and open direct channels to secondhand markets, the report finds. 'Digital Product Passports are critical to powering the future of circularity,' said Alexis Hoopes, VP of Global Fashion at eBay. 'As a global marketplace at the forefront of resale, we're exploring how better product data can enable smarter buying, responsible selling, and a more trusted platform. Unlocking value for consumers is a critical part of the connected product evolution.' From transaction to lifecycle The digital records within DPPs store verified product information on materials, origin, care instructions, ownership history, and environmental impact. These records enable brands to: Launch resale, trade-in and buyback schemes with confidence Offer tailored warranties, repairs and aftercare Track usage and extend product lifespans Report on ESG goals with greater transparency Consumers drive the change The Bain/eBay report highlights that consumers will capture most of the DPP-driven value. By removing friction – no more lost receipts or clunky listings – DPPs will enable one-click resale and boost confidence. As second-hand markets expand, DPPs can act as a flywheel for growth – deepening trust, expanding participation, and making circular shopping second nature. A call to move now With the 2026 deadline for ESPR nearing, the message from the report is clear: act early. The brands investing in DPP infrastructure today – engaging consumers and testing resale models – will be tomorrow's leaders in sustainable, data-driven fashion. Those that wait risk falling behind as the resale economy scales.
Fibre2Fashion
4 days ago
- Business
- Fibre2Fashion
DPPs to redefine fashion value chain, consumers to gain most: Report
The economics of fashion resale is set to be reshaped by upcoming European Union (EU) regulation, with a potential doubling of lifetime product value, and up to 65 per cent of the gains delivered to consumers, according to joint research from Bain & Company and eBay. The study highlighted a transformative opportunity for brands to go beyond mere compliance and reshape the value chain through enhanced transparency, trust, and circularity. With Digital Product Passports (DPPs) becoming mandatory for textiles from 2026 under the EU's Ecodesign Regulation, the report underscored their potential as more than just a regulatory requirement. For instance, a £500 (~$684.67) fashion item today could unlock an additional £500 in value through resale and associated services, facilitated by the trust and traceability offered by a DPP. While resale platforms, brands, and verification services all stand to benefit, the greatest advantage is expected to go to consumers. Fashion brands have been urged to embrace Digital Product Passports (DPPs) as a strategic tool, not just a compliance measure, according to research by Bain & Company and eBay. As EU regulations make DPPs mandatory by 2026, early adopters can unlock resale value, strengthen consumer trust, and drive circularity. With potential gains favouring consumers, DPPs promise a data-driven future. Despite this potential, nearly 90 per cent of brands surveyed still view DPPs as a compliance cost. They have urged a strategic rethink—positioning DPPs as a tool for recurring revenue, stronger consumer engagement, and enhanced sustainability. Around 90 per cent of those surveyed by Bain—currently view DPPs primarily as a regulatory burden. But research encouraged companies to reframe DPPs as a strategic investment capable of generating ongoing revenue, driving sustainability, and strengthening consumer relationships. 'DPPs are more than just checking a compliance box. They are a foundational shift in how value is created, captured, and sustained over a product's lifetime,' said Aaron Cheris, partner in Bain & Company's Retail and Customer Strategy & Marketing practices . 'Brands that act early can build a more direct, data-rich relationship with consumers, tapping into resale trends and personalising services in powerful new ways.' Under the EU's forthcoming Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), nearly every physical product sold in the EU will require a DPP by 2030—yet 90 per cent of brands still see this as a compliance burden, rather than a growth lever. However, the report has called for a shift in mindset. It emphasises that DPPs, far from being a bureaucratic obligation, should be seen as strategic tools to drive revenue. By improving traceability and trust, DPPs can extend a product's value far beyond the original point of sale. DPPs will play a pivotal role in enabling circularity and expanding access to second-hand markets. They can help brands tap into new revenue streams, reinforce consumer trust, and align with evolving sustainability expectations--ultimately positioning them for long-term competitive advantage in a regulation-driven future. 'Digital Product Passports are critical to powering the future of circularity in fashion,' said Alexis Hoopes, vice president (VP) of global fashion at eBay . 'As a global marketplace at the forefront of resale, we're exploring how better product data can enable smarter buying, responsible selling, and a more trusted platform. Unlocking value for consumers is a critical part of the connected product evolution.' The report further highlighted that consumers would capture most of the DPP-driven value. By removing friction—no more lost receipts or clunky listings—DPPs will enable one-click resale and boost confidence. As second-hand markets expand, DPPs can act as a flywheel for growth—deepening trust, expanding participation, and making circular shopping second nature. With the 2026 ESPR deadline fast approaching, it delivered a clear message: act now. Brands that begin building DPP infrastructure, engage consumers, and experiment with resale models today will lead the future of sustainable, data-driven fashion. Those that delay may struggle to keep pace as the resale economy rapidly expands. DPPs are standardised digital records, accessible via QR codes, NFC, blockchain or similar technologies, and contain detailed information about a product's materials, components, origin, environmental footprint, and lifecycle. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (SG)
The Star
13-06-2025
- Business
- The Star
Bangladesh faces textile tsunami
BANGLADESH's limited capacity to deal with the enormous waste generated by its textile sector may prove unsustainable as the global fashion industry faces pressure to reduce its environmental footprint. The world's second-largest apparel producer, Bangladesh only recycles a small percentage of its textile waste, with the rest shipped abroad or left to pollute the landscape. As more countries introduce rules requiring greater recycled content in clothes, analysts and business owners say Bangladesh must expand recycling to meet demand from a global textile recycling market projected to be worth US$9.4bil by 2027. The European Union published in March its first roadmap towards meeting the standards under its Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, which includes provisions for reducing the environmental harm caused by the textile industry. This will require Bangladesh and other fashion suppliers to boost recycling while improving working conditions in what is largely an informal sector, said Patrick Schroder, a senior research fellow at the British think tank Chatham House. 'As the call for recycling grows and fast fashion goes out of fashion in the coming years, millions of jobs will be impacted, and Bangladesh needs to think ahead to step up its capacity to keep up with the changes,' he said. Tonnes of waste Bangladesh's fashion industry is estimated to produce up to 577,000 metric tonnes of textile waste from the factories each year. Most of it is shipped abroad, and the rest is left to clog bodies of water, pollute the soil, enter landfills or be incinerated, which produces toxic gases, according to a report by Switch to Circular Economy Value Chains, a project supported by the EU and the Finnish government. What is processed has evolved into a vast, informal business in Bangladesh. Thousands of informal workshops sort and bundle the waste, known as jhut, and what remains in Bangladesh is downcycled to make low-value products like mattresses, pillows and cushions. When clothing scraps are swept up from factory floors, politicians and other influential people control who gets them and at what price, said Asadun Noor, project coordinator at the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation in Dhaka. 'This is a very opaque process, offering limited visibility of the waste value chain to clothing brands and suppliers,' he said. The scraps go to hundreds of mostly unregistered workshops near the capital Dhaka, where they are cleaned and sorted into batches based on quality, colour and other considerations. Tens of thousands of workers, 70% of them women, sort the remnants for 10 to 12 hours a day, a study by the UN's children agency Unicef said last year. Workers said they toil for low wages without key safety measures, like drinking water, paid sick leave or protection from harassment. One of them is Sabura Begum, 30, who works with 250 other women at a workshop in the city of Narayanganj, near Dhaka. 'I earn a wage of about US$80 a month and it does not make it easy to run my family,' she said. A small share of the waste sorted in workshops like Begum's is sent to about two dozen recycling factories in Bangladesh. A large portion is exported to other countries such as India or Finland for recycling into new fibre where this is a larger base of recycling facilities as well as advanced technology like chemical recycling that produces strong, fresh fibres. Some of the fibres made from exported scraps are then sent back to Bangladesh to be made into clothes. More local recycling could save Bangladesh about US$700mil a year in imports, the Switch to Circular Economy Value Chains report estimated. Other major textile hubs are ramping up recycling capacity. For example, India recycles or reuses about 4.7 million tonnes, or about 60%, of its textile waste, according to a report by Fashion for Good, a coalition of businesses and non-profits. Doing a better job Some Bangladeshi companies are aiming to compete and provide proper labour standards. In 2017, Entrepreneur Abdur Razzaque set up Recycle Raw, which has now become one of the largest waste-processing businesses in Bangladesh. 'We offer decent wages and respect basic labour standards – ensuring things like drinking water, air circulation and security for our largely female workforce – so we attract and retain them much better than others,' Abdur Razzaque said. A few local recycling factories are also investing in adding more production lines, but large-scale investment in technology like chemical recycling, with support from fashion brands and development-finance organisations is needed, said Abdullah Rafi, CEO of recycler Broadway Regenerated Fibre, based in the city of Ashulia, near Dhaka. However, investors expect a regular supply of waste feed stock and that means the current opaque system of handling waste would have to go, he said. 'What we now need is more finance and collaboration among brands, suppliers, waste handlers and recyclers to scale up our capacity,' said Abdullah. — Reuters
Fibre2Fashion
09-06-2025
- Business
- Fibre2Fashion
Matthew Ekholm DPP and Circularity Specialist
Protokol's DPP solution enables companies to align with upcoming DPP mandates As the European Union moves closer to implementing the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR), businesses across industries are under mounting pressure to future-proof their operations and comply with forthcoming sustainability mandates. A key requirement—the Digital Product Passport (DPP)—is set to revolutionise how product data is managed, accessed, and shared across the value chain. In response, Protokol has partnered with Productsup to deliver a seamless solution that enables manufacturers to transform existing product data into fully compliant DPPs both efficiently and cost-effectively. To gain deeper insights into this timely partnership and its implications for the textile and apparel sector, Fibre2Fashion spoke with Protokol's DPP and Circularity Specialist, Matthew Ekholm. In this exclusive interview, he discusses the critical challenges brands are facing, how the new integration streamlines DPP creation, and why early adoption could give companies a competitive edge in the circular economy era. Protokol offers Digital Product Passport solutions tailored to manufacturing. In sectors like textiles, what specific pain points is Protokol solving most frequently today? Protokol's Digital Product Passport (DPP) solutions are allowing fashion and textile enterprises to align with and prepare for compliance with the EU's upcoming DPP mandate—a pillar of the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation (ESPR). The legislation, which entered into force last year and is set to impact any company placing products in the EU marketplace within the mandated product groups, stands as a key tool in advancing circularity in the EU. In regard to pain points, many companies are both unaware and unfamiliar with the upcoming circularity regulations. Our DPP consultancy services help companies understand the requirements, while our DPP Solution offers a tool for companies to create DPPs for their products in preparation for the upcoming DPP mandate. Another pain point many in the fashion sector face is the frequent challenge of data management—from product data and sustainability metrics to environmental impact information and more. This data is often generated by various actors across the value chain and is typically stored in disparate or siloed systems. For companies looking to comply with DPP regulations, collecting and organising this data can be a big challenge. That is why we are pleased to announce the news of our partnership with Productsup. As an overview, our recent partnership with Productsup, the feed product data management and syndication platform, allows companies to collate their product data, pulling in data from a variety of different sources. They can then quickly and easily map this data against DPP templates to ensure that the required data is both present and displayed in a valid format. DPPs can then quickly and easily be created from this mapped data—solving the challenges related to collecting and organising data from disparate sources. How does Protokol ensure interoperability between its Digital Product Passport systems and legacy manufacturing systems that are still widely in use? With our API-enabled DPP solution, customers can import product data directly from external sources (legacy systems) to populate their DPPs. Ultimately, this means that the DPP solution will work in tandem with legacy systems, rather than simply replacing them. The benefits of this are that product data can remain in existing systems and be utilised for DPPs; ERP and SCM systems may also be able to support this data-gathering process. As our API-enabled DPP solution continues to gain traction, there is no need for the replacement of legacy systems, and the time or resources required for implementation are lowered. When it comes to our integration with Productsup more specifically, customers can not only import product data from single sources, but also instead import, merge, and map data fields from existing product data against required data fields for the DPP. In practice this means that data can be gathered from not just a single source, but a multitude of legacy systems across the supply chain. This has distinct advantages for organisations where the product data they may be required to include in their Digital Product Passports is collected and stored by suppliers, manufacturers, partners or external systems. How does your partnership with Productsup position Protokol to support brands in meeting broader sustainability reporting directives like the CSRD? The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) aims to make businesses more accountable for the sustainability of their operations and supply chains by enhancing transparency. While the deadline has faced delays—likely into late 2025—certain businesses operating within the EU will soon need to report their sustainability and social data in line with the European Sustainability Reporting Standard (ESRS), which includes greenhouse gas emissions, water usage, and even working conditions. Instead of seeking to 'plug' these gaps manually, DPPs can be used to support fashion brands in meeting this regulatory demand. When furnishing DPPs, typically the data collected comes from the broader supply chain (e.g. suppliers, external manufacturers), in addition to the company itself. This makes the inclusion of Scope 3 data and many other environmental impact data points much easier. With data needing to be verifiable and transparent for the ESPR, this has the potential to also be utilised to meet many of the CSRD reporting requirements (such as the Scope 3 data reporting requirement) by providing a verifiable audit trail necessary for CSRD compliance. Therefore, as DPPs can be utilised to support both CSRD and ESPR compliance, businesses will need to collect and standardise detailed product data, such as material composition, repair guidelines, and certifications, in secure, machine-readable formats accessible to stakeholders across the supply chain. Our integration with Productsup will help fashion brands seamlessly collect and organise data, embed it into DPPs efficiently, and ensure comprehensive compliance with multiple circularity requirements. Can you walk us through a recent implementation of Protokol's technology in a textile or apparel manufacturing firm and the measurable impact it had? While not yet announced, Protokol is currently working on a pilot with a customer in the fashion resale space who has taken steps to implement DPPs not just for compliance but also to empower the sustainable consumer. Garments entering the resale market will be issued with a unique DPP that provides a transparent overview of key product lifecycle data. By providing consumers with transparent product insight, they can become more confident in the authenticity, sustainability, circularity and history of the product they are buying. This is vital in encouraging consumers to become more 'eco-conscious' when it comes to purchasing decisions, empowering them with the information needed to make sustainable choices and actively impact what items remain in circulation or stop being produced. Supply chain transparency is a key challenge—how does your technology enable real-time traceability and trust across stakeholders? With the Product Lifecycle Event Registration feature, the Protokol DPP enables users to accurately track events throughout a product's lifecycle, from creation, to repair to recycle. By allowing user-generated or system-generated events to be created as part of the DPP, all permissioned stakeholders involved in a product's lifecycle can create events related to manufacture, repair, end-of-life and more, ensuring no major lifecycle event is unaccounted for. Such trails are created to foster enhanced traceability and reporting. In simple terms, Protokol's DPP solution can capture data insights relating to how a product is used, its lifespan, and more; and not just from the manufacturers, but from stakeholders across the value chain and even directly from the customers who use it. Textile and apparel manufacturers are under pressure to meet ESG goals—how is Protokol helping such clients track and report environmental or ethical compliance using DPPs? Protokol's Digital Product Passport solution enables companies to align with (and eventually comply with) upcoming DPP mandates, which are being put forward by the EU as a tool for encouraging the circularity and sustainability of products. DPP solutions will allow companies to meet ESG goals by demonstrating the sustainability and circularity of a product to stakeholders across the value chain, including end-users such as the consumer. Data included in DPPs can include the environmental impact of products, including metrics such as water usage, carbon footprint, and more. With some DPP solutions, this data can be exported for auditing or compliance purposes. In this way, DPP solutions such as Protokol's are enabling textile and apparel brands to track and report the environmental impact of their products. With the EU's upcoming ESPR and Digital Product Passport mandate, how is Protokol enabling fashion and textile businesses to turn existing e-commerce data into compliant DPPs efficiently and at scale? We are aware that gathering product data to create DPPs is often a significant and strenuous undertaking, usually requiring teams to source data from a range of disparate systems prior to even considering standardisation or organisation. At a time when deadlines are closing in, this process is a huge burden on companies that need to begin their ESPR compliance journey. Our integration with Productsup is wholly focused on making this process seamless for their customers, including fashion retailers, who now need to gather their data and implement it into DPPs ahead of the ESPR's DPP mandate coming into force. Productsup allows for direct integration with e-commerce platforms or various other sources, allowing data to be imported into the platform in one smooth and streamlined effort. This data can then be quickly and easily mapped against purpose-built DPP templates to allow companies to create DPPs efficiently and at scale. How are textile and apparel manufacturers leveraging DPPs to boost operational efficiency, sustainability, and traceability in supply chains? Beyond compliance and efficiency with EU regulations, DPPs are unlocking new value for textile and apparel brands. They enable better storytelling by letting consumers scan a data carrier on a product, such as a QR code, and see a garment's journey. By amplifying an item's sustainability credentials, they empower brands to build loyalty by proving their commitment to ethical and sustainable practices. This is particularly important amidst the phenomenon of 'greenwashing' and the challenges businesses also face, beyond regulatory demands, to prove their sustainability pledges at a time when so many are positioning themselves as 'ethical' to increase sales and garner attraction. Moreover, from an operational efficiency standpoint, DPPs streamline data management across the product lifecycle. Traditionally, businesses have struggled with fragmented information systems and manual documentation. In other words, DPPs consolidate key product data—such as material composition, origin, and disposal advice—into one digital format that is accessible in real time to all stakeholders. Are you seeing more demand from large enterprises or mid-size manufacturers? How are adoption patterns varying globally? Although compliance timelines and regulatory requirements vary, both SMEs and large enterprises remain on edge as they navigate the initial steps towards complying with the EU regulation. Off the back of this, it is unsurprising that we are seeing demand coming from both large enterprises and SMEs when it comes to DPP adoption. Patterns of adoption are largely in line with the ESPR's prioritised industries, with textiles being one of the first. We are also seeing interest from other industries where the companies themselves value the DPP use cases beyond compliance, such as sustainability and circularity use cases. Where do you see the manufacturing industry in the next five years, and what role will Protokol play in shaping that future? Over the next five years, the manufacturing industry is poised for a major transformation driven by tightening sustainability regulations, growing consumer demand for transparency, and technological innovation. One of the most significant shifts will be the widespread adoption of DPPs, which will become an important tool for facilitating enhanced circularity of products across a variety of industries. We expect to see an increase in demand for products that are made from more sustainable materials, for manufacturers that utilise more sustainable materials, produce less waste, and have a smaller environmental footprint. Added to this, we also expect to see increased demand for remanufacturing, and for the reuse of components alongside higher rates of product refurbishment and repair. As regulatory frameworks like ESPR become more stringent and expand globally, manufacturers will be compelled to shift from linear production models towards closed-loop systems. This transition will demand digital infrastructure that can ensure data integrity, interoperability, and scalability. With increasing global focus on ESG compliance, how are manufacturers integrating sustainability and transparency into their operations and supply chains? As the EU's circularity movement and varied regulatory demands work their way down to enterprises across industries, manufacturers across sectors are integrating DPPs to give more visibility of products across the value chain for multiple stakeholders. Due to the detailed data DPPs provide, they can support and inform future (more sustainable) design decisions. Via DPPs, sustainability attributes (e.g., carbon footprint, water usage, biodegradability) can be digitally captured and shared from the outset, enabling better product stewardship and circularity across the item's value chain. Furthermore, concerning increased sustainability, DPPs facilitate new, sustainable business models—such as resale, repair, and recycling—by offering stakeholders (such as resellers or consumers) the product data they need to keep materials in use longer. This aligns manufacturers with circular economy goals and reduces their dependence on sourcing new resources. DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Clothing prioritized in European Commission's 5-year plan
This story was originally published on Fashion Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Fashion Dive newsletter. The European Commission has prioritized textiles, especially clothing, in its five-year working plan for implementing legislation outlined in the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, or ESPR, which will begin this year, according to a press release. According to the plan, the commission will now, over the next five years, begin laying down specific requirements for product labeling and design. Those requirements will include minimum standards for a product's durability and recycled content, as well as mandatory digital product passports, per the press release. For clothing, these requirements need to be adopted in 2027, and apply to all products placed on the European market, regardless of their country of origin, or the size of the company producing them. ESPR was formally adopted by the European Commission last year, and the regulation is intended to help the European Union meet its environmental, circularity, and climate goals. The measure also harmonizes sustainability requirements and will 'level the playing field' across the EU's 27 member countries, which include 450 million consumers, per the working plan's details. Textiles, especially clothing, emerged as a top priority in the plan. The European market size for the sector, excluding footwear, is estimated at 78 billion euros, or about $88 billion. Although footwear is not included in the working plan currently outlined, a study will be commissioned to evaluate improving footwear's sustainability, to be completed by 2027. The current plan is intended to 'build up experience and capacity of ESPR to reach its full regulatory potential,' eventually expanding to other products, per plan documents. 'By setting clear priorities, we are providing legal certainty and predictability for the concerned industries, fostering innovation, and driving investment to support the transition to a circular economy,' Jessika Roswall, Commissioner for Environment, Water Resilience and a Competitive Circular Economy, said in the press release. Recommended Reading European Council adopts proposal to delay sustainability reporting Sign in to access your portfolio
