The Global Market

• The global market for smart clothing is in the early stages of its development, with research being carried out into the applications and possible impact of smart fabrics and electronic textiles.
• The current market, which is predominately in North America and Europe, focuses on sports and fitness but is expected to expand over the coming years, growing to around $4.08 billion by 2023. 
• The wearable technology industry was worth $23bn in 2018 and is expected to grow to $54bn by 2023 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19%.

Smart Clothing and Care Labels

• Labels that only provide information about a garment's care may become a thing of the past if smart clothing becomes mainstream. Consumers are likely to see a rise in smart clothing that connects with the wearer's smart phone and provides them not only care instructions but also up-to-date information about the condition of their garment, personal health insights, social interaction capabilities and more.
• As uses for smart clothing expand, it is reasonable to expect this technology to be utilized by the fashion industry, including providing users with information on how to care for their garments. Care labels that also collect GPS, bio metrics, and environmental data are already being researched by the world's largest supplier of care labels, Avery Dennison.
• In 2017, Google and Levi collaboratively created jackets through Google's Jacquard project that used a washable battery powered Bluetooth tag to control the wearer's smart phone. Although the technology does not focus on care labels specifically, it shows the mainstream release of smart clothing that has paved the way for further development of smart clothing. Levi is currently developing smart jeans with the same washable tag, which is now half the size of the tag used in the jackets.

RFID and NFC Technology

•  NFC technology is easy and cheap to use and may provide wearers with easily accessible and more detailed care information and advice directly to their smart phone. Users are able to scan a QR code, which will take them directly to up-to-date information online.
• This technology is limited in its application, unlike other smart clothing technologies that are currently being researched.
• Care labels are already changing as some manufacturers are creating care labels that communicate directly with a wearer's RFID-enabled washers, dryers, irons, presses, and dry cleaning equipment. This technology makes it easier for the wearer to access care instructions and to care for their garments effectively.

Legal Implications

• While there does not seem to be a change in the legal requirement for care labels in the US, the format the information is presented to consumers in is more likely to change with the introduction of smart clothing.
• For smart clothing to provide users with care instructions via technology such as NFC, the clothing would require unique product identification that is legally protected from duplication.
• Patents and licensing of new technology is a concern for this growing market, with many brands already in dispute over the development of smart fabrics and textiles.
• Smart clothing poses some considerable legal implications due to the new features and technology used in its design. These include but are not limited to consumer privacy and security, and compliance with new standards that the fashion industry has previously not required to address. An example of this would be a garment that measures the wearers blood pressure or heart rate, as it would be required to comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA).

Research Strategy

COUNTRIES THAT REQUIRE CARE LABELS

• Permanent care labels are required in Australia.

• China requires care labels for garments. The updated standard that regulates this is GB/T 8685-2008, which was voted by the National Textile Base Standard Technical Sub-committee, and has been effective since March 1st, 2009.
• According to the Household Goods Quality Labeling Act, a care label should be permanently attached to most household goods sold in Japan. The Japanese care labeling regulation JIS L 0001:2014 includes details on current symbol usage requirements and has been effective since December 1st, 2016.

• Care labeling is mandatory in South Korea.

• Care labels are required for garments in the United States according to the Federal Trade Commission’s Care Label Rule. All labels must use the care symbols in the ASTM D5489-96c standard.

• The GMC Resolution No. 62/18 regulation defines the mandatory labeling requirements for all textile products sold in the MERCOSUR member countries: Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

•  Other countries where care labeling is mandatory include Algeria, Barbados, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Israel, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Philippines, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, and Vietnam.

EUROPEAN UNION

• The compulsory aspect of care labeling varies across the different European Union countries. Most of them use the international care labeling code GINETEX, which is a voluntary service offered to consumers by the apparel and textile industries in order to standardize labeling design. Using these trademarked symbols removes the need to provide written care information on care labels, eliminating language barrier issues.
• Care labeling is mandatory in Austria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, and Spain.
• Care labeling is optional in Belgium, France, Germany, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, United Kingdom, Bulgaria, Denmark, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, and the Slovak Republic.
• According to Ginetex, 3 out of 4 Europeans never or rarely buy a garment without a care label. This also applies to 83% of Germans and Britons.
• Care labeling is not required under EU law, but certain member countries, such as Austria, may require this labeling. However, the EU may find manufacturers liable for defective products under the Product Liability Directive of 1985 if they do not provide this information, so including care labeling with textile products sold in the European Union is highly recommended.
• European consumer organizations are in favor of mandatory regimes to provide consumers with a standardized experience across the EU. However, industry and standardization bodies generally oppose mandatory regimes due to the anticipated costs involved, and because the current mostly voluntary regime is perceived as effective.

COUNTRIES THAT DO NOT REQUIRE CARE LABELS

• As per the Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA), the countries where care labeling is optional include: Armenia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malta, Netherlands, Pakistan, Portugal, Singapore, Sweden, Switzerland, Slovenia, Tanzania, Tunisia, UAE, and UK.

• Textile products are only required to state their fiber composition under the optional care labeling regimen in Slovenia.

• Based on the CGSB standard, providing care label information is voluntary in Canada. Any additional written information in garment labels must appear in both English and French.

• Care labels are not mandatory in the United Kingdom, though their use is strongly encouraged. The UK Fashion & Textile Association (UKFT), recommends the use of GINETEX symbols, which are also implemented throughout Europe as well in many other countries including Japan, India, and China.

• Care labels are not mandatory in Switzerland; where designating the material, origin, and size of a particular item is also optional. GINETEX Switzerland oversees the implementation of standardized textile care labeling.

NON-REGULATED CARE LABEL MARKETS

•  Manufacturers in deregulated markets where the garment supply industry is not required to provide mandatory care labels can choose from a range of international labeling standards.
• Markets in which care labeling is optional do not incur in compliance costs. This allows for an increase in importation options as suppliers will not be required to relabel garments to comply with the markets' standard.
• Non-standardized markets allow for innovations in care labeling, such as the option of including simplified caring instructions without detracting from the comfort or appearance of a garment.

RESEARCH STRATEGY

RFID AND NFC TECHNOLOGIES

•  RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology allows for items to be uniquely identified through radio waves, while NFC (Near Field Communication) is one of its specialized subsets.
• As per retailer AtlasRFID, RFID tracking applications for the textile and apparel labeling industry include laundry management, access to clothing care information analytic data, and inventory tracking. Laundry management and information analytic data applications would require an RFID reader and are expected to be reserved to hospitals, hotels, and laundry facilities, while inventory tracking applications will likely be taken advantage of by apparel retailer companies. Access to clothing care information and analytic data will be available to end-users thanks to NFC type 5 tags, which are readable by NFC-enabled smartphones in proximity to the tag (contactless technology).
•  RFID-enabled labels can include weaved text and integrated woven RFID antennas. They can include 13.56 MHz NFC chips that are compliant with the ISO 14443 standard so that the tags respond both to UHF readers and NF-enabled devices such as tablets and smartphones.
• NFC tags for garments such as the NTAG212 can be stretchable, sewn into clothes, bent, ironed, and crumpled. They are fully waterproof and resist up to 150°C.
• The popularity of textile wearables that implement NFC technology labels is on the rise. This technology has the potential to expand textile label applications beyond care information, as it can enrich the user experience by providing access to personalized customer service, branding marketing opportunities, and additional item information.
•  Privacy concerns arise from the application of smart technologies to garments.
• According to the Federal Trade Commission, privacy best practices surrounding internet-connected wearables include data security, collecting the minimum amount of data needed, notifying the consumer, and allowing the user to consent to the extraction of personal data.
• These technologies are set to increase the price of care tags. For this reason, high-end fashion brands are most likely to headline the application of this technology.
•  Anti-counterfeiting of clothes is an additional potential benefit of the use of NFC technology in care tags.

QR CODES

• The introduction of QR codes in care labels allows for additional information about a garment to be easily obtained by scanning them with a smartphone. Thermal transfer printing is used to print labels with QR codes that are durable and can be easily scanned.
• GINETEX developed a smartphone application to educate users on the meaning of textile care symbols. Users can obtain specific information about their textile products, such as care information, origin, and raw material composition, by scanning the code included within their garment's care label tag.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY