US: Avery Dennison offers cut-price RFID for AAFA members

By just-style.com | 9 January 2006

The American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) has signed a deal with Avery Dennison Retail Information Services to provide sharply discounted rates for Radio Frequency Identification technology (RFID) labels to AAFA member companies.

The rates are available exclusively to AAFA members that are producers and providers of apparel and footwear products.

Under the agreement, Avery Dennison will provide Gen 1 RFID labels and also the new Gen 2 AD-220 label.

AAFA members that need to meet RFID requirements can use these labels for shipments to customers such as Wal-Mart, Target, and the Department of Defense. Minimum orders can be as low as 5,000 labels.

AAFA president and chief executive Kevin Burke explained: "RFID technology is rapidly becoming a requirement for manufacturers and producers who wish to supply major retailers and distributors in the global marketplace.

"At the request of our members, AAFA staff worked with an industry task group represented by Perry Ellis International, Russell Corporation, Sara Lee Corporation, and Williamson-Dickie Manufacturing Company to develop this affinity program as a service and benefit for AAFA members who wish to take advantage of lower label rates.

"We've done all the work necessary for AAFA members, large and small, to get started".

Mischa Reis, director of RFID marketing for Avery Dennison's Retail Information Services division, said: "Many AAFA members are already our customers in our core business and we are looking forward to providing them with our latest Avery RFID label technology".

AAFA members will be provided with signup forms in order to get started with the program.

AAFA is the national trade association representing apparel, footwear and other sewn products companies, and their suppliers, including several dozen US textile companies, which compete in the global market.

Avery Dennison Retail Information Services provides a global offering of information management, brand identification and solution-enabling products.

Sectors: Apparel, Finance, Footwear, Technology

Companies: AAFA, Avery Dennison, Wal-Mart, Perry Ellis, Russell, Lee