The YKK Group announced that WaveOn has joined its network of software partners supporting YKK’s Touchlink fasteners, enabled with Near Field Communication technology.

Japan-based YKK is the world’s largest zipper manufacturer, and its growing network of Touchlink fastener software partners is increasing the number of firms brands can choose from when developing new consumer experiences such as providing product and warranty information as well as one-on-one customer engagement.

“We see TouchLink fasteners not only as a portal for brands to provide their customers a unique brand experience unmatched by other technologies but as an important component for enabling new circular business models,” said Terry Tsukumo, vice president of YKK Corporation’s Global Marketing Group.

WaveOn allows brands to turn their physical products into Web3 marketing, sales and experiences. Customers can wave their smart phones over a WaveOn activated product to access digital content and services.

YKK’s Touchlink fastener is durable as the NFC chip is enclosed in the zipper, making it protected from moisture and breakage. By using the zipper as the Touchlink point, brands are able to easily add digital connectivity without having to alter product designs.

“The WaveOn platform ultimately connects consumers to digital and Web3 experiences through their physical products,” said Jurgen Schmerler, CEO of WaveOn. “YKK’s expertise helps us bring that platform to life in a wide variety of products and simplifies the embedding process for our brand partners.”

YKK’s Touchlink fasteners appear across 17 styles for men and women in the latest Fall/Winter collection by Artilect. The brand said using the NFC-enabled zippers helps it achieve its circularity goals by making garment information more readily available and helps facilitate resale, repair and recycling. Artilect became the first U.S. brand to use the Touchlink zipper in addition to being the first brand to use two other YKK products, a water repellent concealed zipper and a user-reparable detachable slider function that makes repairing broken zippers easier.