The South Asian nation is working on making the barcodes a regular part of the apparel industry.
Clothing companies in Sri Lanka have been adding traceability QR codes to their products as a part of an effort to comply with new legal changes that are expected to be rolled out throughout the fashion industry in years to come.
Transparency and traceability are critical
Manufacturers throughout Sri Lanka are teaming up with Global Language of Business (GS1), the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to place the spotlight directly on traceability and transparency. Each of these participants have committed to attaching QR codes to all apparel manufactured in Sri Lanka.
Scanning the barcode provides brand information, product materials, supply chain traceability, care instructions, and even suggestions for the product’s end of life.
QR codes will be customer accessible
The quick response barcodes on the clothing won’t just be used within the industry but will be available to the end consumer as well. In this way, anyone who wants to learn everything about where the article of clothing is coming from will be able to gain the information they are seeking.
According to GS1 New Zealand general manager government Nick Allison, the GS1-powered barcodes will look like any other typical quick response barcode. Therefore, consumers will recognize them and know how to scan them.
That said, these particular barcodes will also have an embedded number that will make it possible to gain more specific information than would typically be available through this type of barcode. The information will be particular to the apparel to which it has been affixed.
Fashion wants traceability
Coach, Mara Hoffman, and many other well-known fashion brands have already rolled out their own traceability tools to help make it easier to track certain items and product lines, as well as to make it possible for merchants and consumers to be certain that a product is legitimate and not a knockoff.
That said, adoption of these types of strategies is hardly universal. The new technique employing QR codes is meant to make it easier and more affordable for apparel brands to be able to implement a meaningful transparency and traceability strategy.
