DIGITAL PRODUCT PASSPORTS
A Digital Product Passport (DPP) is a digital profile for each product that makes key information accessible and actionable. It brings together data on materials and origin, supplier certifications, environmental impacts, and circularity attributes. By structuring this information in a standardized way, DPPs enable consistent data collection and sharing across the value chain.
KARL LAGERFELD's IMPACT Ambassador, Amber Valletta about the role of transparency and Digital Product Passports:
"Since the Pre-Fall 2025 collection, we have started to integrate these passports across our products. It’s something I’m proud of, but also something I see as ongoing work. Transparency at this level doesn’t happen overnight. It requires patience, collaboration, and a willingness to keep improving, especially when it comes to the quality and depth of the information we rely on.
For me, the most important part is what we do with that knowledge. Transparency should lead to action."
Partnering With Fairly Made
To strengthen traceability and transparency across the value chain, we established a partnership with Fairly Made.
Through its platform, production chains are mapped, and supplier data is collected and analyzed to assess social and environmental impacts. These insights are then translated into DPPs, accessible via QR codes or online interfaces, enabling stakeholders to trace materials and understand a product’s journey.
The Methodology Behind the DPP
Fairly Made’s methodology is based on Life Cycle Assessment, a recognized approach used to evaluate the environmental impact of a product across its entire life cycle, from raw material extraction to production, use, and end-of-life. This enables a more comprehensive understanding of impact, going beyond single indicators such as carbon emissions to include a broader set of environmental criteria (European Environment Agency, n.d.).
The methodology follows a structured framework defined in the ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 international standards, consisting of four main steps:
1. Defining the scope and objectives.
2. Compiling a life cycle inventory of relevant data.
3. Assessing environmental impacts using established calculation methods.
4. Interpreting the results.
Data inputs combine primary supplier data with secondary data from established databases, supporting a consistent and robust assessment of environmental impacts across products.
As a multi-step and multi-criteria approach, LCA captures the complexity of a product’s life cycle while translating it into measurable indicators. The results support the identification of environmental hotspots, comparison of product scenarios, and more informed design and sourcing decisions. These insights are integrated into DPPs, providing a structured and consistent basis for environmental information.
To make these impacts easier to interpret, Fairly Made groups them into a set of 16 environmental impact criteria, in line with standardized Product Environmental Footprint Category Rules (PEFCR) methodology.
Each criterion represents a specific type of impact, such as climate change, water pollution, or resource use, by combining multiple emissions into a single, measurable indicator. For example, GHGs such as carbon dioxide and methane are grouped under the ‘climate change’ category and expressed in CO₂ equivalents.
Together, these criteria provide a structured overview of a product’s environmental footprint, helping translate complex data into insights that support decision-making and transparent communication.
PARTNERS AND COLLECTIVES
HOW TO READ THE DIGITAL PRODUCT PASSPORT
KARL LAGERFELD’s Digital Product Passport provides product-level information on materials and supply chain traceability, based on available data collected from suppliers and partners. It can be accessed by scanning a QR code in the garment’s care label.
The passports are powered by Fairly Made®, a traceability and impact measurement platform that helps KARL LAGERFELD collect and display product-specific information across its supply chain.
The Digital Product Passport collates information on the product’s materials, supply chain, traceability, recyclability, and selected environmental characteristics, to provide the information available for that specific item at the time of analysis.
Using a smartphone, scan the QR code in your product’s care label. You can also access the passport through selected product pages on KARLLAGERFELD.COM.
The Digital Product Passport makes product information more accessible to customers, bringing key details together in one place. This includes information on identified materials, suppliers and production stages. As supply chains are complex and continually evolve, the passport reflects the data available for that specific product at the time of analysis.
MATERIALS
The Materials section shows the main material composition of the product. Depending on the item, this may include the main fabric, lining, trims and other components.
RECYCLABILITY SCORE
The Recyclability score ranges from 1/5 to 5/5 and is calculated by Fairly Made®.
The score indicates the product’s recyclability potential based on factors including its product type, material composition, recycling method, and how easily it can be broken down into fibers for reuse. Actual recycling also depends on factors like collection, sorting and recycling infrastructure, which may vary by location.
A higher score indicates greater recyclability potential under Fairly Made®’s methodology. The below follows Fairly Made’s definition of scoring:
5/5 - Products made from a single component and a single material are generally easier to recycle, as they can be broken down into fibers and potentially transformed into new yarn.
1/5 - Products containing elastane, or complex product types such as shoes and bags, are more difficult to recycle through fiber recycling processes.
The score should be read as an indication of recyclability potential based on Fairly Made®’s methodology and the product information available at the time of analysis.
TRACEABILITY SCORE
The Traceability score ranges from 1/5 to 5/5 and is calculated by Fairly Made®.
According to Fairly Made's definition, the Traceability score of a product indicates the extent to which suppliers and production stages have been identified in the product information. This score reflects the proportion of supply chain actors identified for the product components and production stages included in Fairly Made® methodology.
The score is based on:
1. The number of manufacturing steps required to produce the item is estimated. This involves mapping out the entire production process, from raw material extraction to the final assembly of the product.
2. The suppliers involved in the product supply chain are identified with their role and country of origin.
3. Each component of a product has its own traceability score based on the number of suppliers identified in its supply chain.
4. The traceability score of a product is the weighted sum of the scores of its components according to the weight of each of them.
0/5 - No supplier has been identified in the supply chain.
5/5 - All suppliers in all tiers have been identified.
PRODUCT TAB
The Product tab shows where the key stages of the product supply chain took place.
For selected product components, like the main fabric, the Digital Product Passport shows the production stages and the country linked to each stage. These may include weaving, dyeing, and product manufacturing.
Weaving is the process of turning yarns into fabric.
Dyeing is the process of applying color to the fabric or material.
Product manufacturing is the process of assembling the product into its final form.
Arrows show the sequence of these stages. For example, a product’s main fabric may be traced through weaving, dyeing, and product manufacturing, with the relevant country shown for each stage.
PLASTIC MICROFIBERS
Where shown, the Plastic Microfibers section indicates that a product may release microplastics into the environment during washing. This information is generally relevant to products containing synthetic materials and highlights a potential environmental impact that can occur during the product’s use.
DETAILED TRACEABILITY
The Detailed Traceability section provides a more complete view of the identified supply chain for a selected component.
It shows the countries and the production stages identified for that component. Depending on the material and product type, these may include polymer synthesis, spinning, weaving, dyeing, product manufacturing and warehousing.
Polymer synthesis is the process of creating synthetic raw materials.
Spinning is the process of turning fibers into yarn.
Weaving is the process of turning yarns into fabric.
Dyeing is the process of applying color to the material.
Product manufacturing is the process of assembling the product into its final form.
Warehouse is the stage where the finished product is stored before distribution.
When multiple components are available, use the dropdown to view traceability information for each component separately.
FAQs
The Digital Product Passport is part of KARL LAGERFELD’s effort to make product information easier to access. By bringing product-level information together in one place, it helps customers understand the data available for a specific item.
The information shown depends on factors like the product type, materials, supply chain complexity and data available at the time of analysis. As supply chains can vary significantly between products, some items may have more detailed traceability or environmental information than others.
The Digital Product Passport shows the key identified stages in the product’s supply chain, which may include steps like material production, dyeing and final manufacturing. Assupply chains can be complex, the passport should be understood as a product-level overview of the information available at the time of analysis.