Liquid-detecting NFC tag
© TOPPAN Digital Inc.

Taking theme of “Fusing Digital & Ecological” to present solutions for authentication, tracking of grey market diversion, and eco-friendly and plastic-free NFC tags 

Tokyo – TOPPAN Digital Inc. (TOPPAN Digital), a TOPPAN Group company and wholly owned subsidiary of TOPPAN Holdings Inc. will participate in Paris Packaging Week 2024, one of Europe’s leading luxury packaging events, which will be held in Paris on January 17 and 18.

At last year’s Paris Packaging Week, the TOPPAN Group presented high-security NFC tags for authenticity verification and opening detection as well as its ID authentication platform. This year, the TOPPAN booth will focus on cosmetics, taking the theme of “Fusing Digital & Ecological” for smarter packages and environmental friendliness. TOPPAN Digital will showcase secure solutions that drive brand protection and ensure safe and secure distribution for the luxury cosmetics industry as well as a plastic-free, paper NFC tag that can contribute to addressing environmental issues.

Background

With the coronavirus pandemic subsiding, the luxury market is expanding but this also means damage caused by imitation goods has started to increase again. Grey market diversion that exploits price differences between countries is also a focus of concern.

Traceability solutions employing NFC tags are effective in combatting these threats, but applying the tags to the surface of product packages can negatively impact visual appearance, obstruct product information, and increase the workload for the brand by requiring a process to affix the tags to packages. Another issue is that NFC tags generally employ a plastic substrate, such as PET film, limiting their use by brands who want to move away from plastic.

Under the theme of “Fusing Digital & Ecological,” at Paris Packaging Week TOPPAN Digital aims to drive adoption of its solutions to these challenges, with a focus on the high-end cosmetics sector. By providing eco-friendly and plastic-free NFC tags as well as smart packages to deliver solutions for product authentication, traceability, consumer engagement, and more, TOPPAN Digital strives to protect brand value and ensure consumer safety.

Main solutions on show

TOPPAN Digital will showcase various NFC tag and smart package solutions focused on cosmetics.

• NFC tag that detects volume of liquid inside a container

This new addition to TOPPAN Digital’s lineup of NFC tags detects the presence and remaining volume of liquid inside a container based on the level of capacitance. Users simply read the NFC tag on the container with a smartphone to check how much of the product is left inside.

• Smart packages with integrated NFC functions

Both security and design can be maintained by integrating NFC tags into the structure of paper-based packages.

An opening detection function incorporated into the NFC communication circuit makes it possible to engage with consumers in different ways at different stages. For example, providing product information before consumers open a product and promotional content to drive additional purchases afterwards.

• Plastic-free paper NFC tag

The paper NFC tag that will be on show at Paris Packaging Week is plastic-free and maintains communication performance equivalent to that of TOPPAN Digital’s conventional products with PET film substrates.

It is also 30% thinner than PET-film-based models, making it easier to integrate into packages.

• NFC tags for luxury cosmetics packaging

Various NFC tags aligned with demand from the cosmetics industry will be on display, including the on-metal tag, which maintains good communication performance even when attached to metal containers, and super mini-sized tags, which are ideal for compact containers for cosmetics products such as lipstick and mascara.

• ID authentication platform

TOPPAN Digital provides an ID authentication platform that enables tag data read by smartphones to be managed in the cloud. The TOPPAN booth at Paris Packaging Week will run demonstrations in which NFC tags attached to cosmetics samples are read using smartphones to enable various consumer services via the ID authentication platform, including provision of product information, product authentication, and digital promotions. TOPPAN Digital will also present solutions facilitating supply chain management, such as monitoring of grey market diversion and traceability management that harnesses the data collected on the platform.

About Paris Packaging Week 2024

Dates: January 17 and 18, 2024
Venue :Paris Expo Porte de Versailles
Organizer: Easyfairs (Headquarters: Brussels, Belgium)
Website: https://www.parispackagingweek.com/en/exhibitor/paris-packaging-week-2024/ 
TOPPAN booth: J192

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