From brand promise to proof. How North Sails achieved full product traceability and Digital Product Passports without the heavy lift.

North Sails Apparel is a globally recognized lifestyle and performance brand rooted in a deep commitment to sustainability and ocean conservation. Known for combining cutting-edge materials with responsible design, North Sails serves environmentally conscious consumers across the globe.
To uphold their sustainability promise, the brand needed real proof. Especially in the textile industry, where misinformation is common, consumer scrutiny is rising, and regulations are tightening across the EU and beyond. With a complex, multi-tier supply chain, traditional methods simply couldn’t keep up.

The Chief Sustainability Officer at North Sails Apparel set out to achieve full traceability of every product, from fabric to trims, with as little internal burden as possible. The goal was to:

• Deliver on their brand’s sustainability promise
• Reduce risk and uncertainty in the supply chain
• Get ahead of upcoming regulations, including the EU’s ESPR and Digital Product Passport (DPP) requirements

Rather than building in-house tools or hiring more compliance staff and external consultants to develop custom DPPs, North Sails chose to partner with Ovido for a faster, smarter, and scalable path forward.

• DPP Template builder in Ovido to engage consumers and satisfy regulation with a breeze.
• Smart Data Inquiries to collect supply chain data effortlessly
• Certificate Management tools to replace manual follow-ups and chaos

“Working with Ovido has in building the foundations of our traceability program. They listened closely, adapted quickly, and shaped their platform around the realities of our supply chain. Our pilot with three of our iconic and high-volume products gave us the confidence and the clarity we needed to scale.”

– Mădălina Preda, Chief Sustainability Officer, North Technology Group

Within first 2 months, North Sails Apparel had:

• Their first high-value products traced end-to-end, new insights of their supply chain and about their product material’s origin being of recycled content.
• Launched branded, consumer-ready DPPs on their website to engage and be more transparent with their customer base.
• Established a repeatable, automated process to scale traceability across all product lines that is in line with their own goals