Google’s Project Jacquard and its partnership with Levi’s was a much-talked-about collaboration that offered access to calls, texts, maps and music controls when the customer couldn’t get to his/ her phone. Now, another popular international clothing brand Tommy Hilfiger has announced the launch of a new range of men’s and women’s clothing, which comes with smart-chip embedded technology. The company aims to reward the customer with points for wearing their clothing. The line includes t-shirts, sweatshirts, hoodies, jeans, jackets, caps, and bags which pair with the Tommy Jeans Xplore iOS app over Bluetooth. Once paired, the users will compete in various challenges in the app in order to earn points. The points can then be translated into rewards that include gift cards, signed merchandise and other goodies.
However, the greatest drawback of this project is that it is just another marketing technique by a company. Apart from using a smart technology – like the embedded Awear Solutions’ Bluetooth low-energy smart tag, the company has not made an innovation. Moreover, those who are obsessed with the brand will only see it as a unique addition to their wardrobe. As the customer who wears these clothes can be tracked, there are also questions regarding privacy. It seems that the company is also aware of this and expects to create a micro-community of brand ambassadors. The brand, however, is not doing this for the first time and has also tried other marketing strategies in the past.
