Avery Dennison, 49ers Collaborate on NFC-Enabled Levi’s Patch

Avery Dennison, the Official Cutting Edge Embellishment Partner to the San Francisco 49ers, recently worked with 49ers marquee sponsor Levi Strauss & Co to produce an NFC-chip enabled patch that was included in season-ticket-holder gift boxes at the beginning of the regular season.

The commemorative patch from Levi’s® and Avery Dennison celebrates ten seasons of the 49ers in Levi’s Stadium. Embedded into the embroidered patch via AD TexTrace Heat Seal LoG is an NFC chip that unlocks a special “Thank You, Season Ticket Holders” video message from general anager John Lynch featuring highlights from the past 10 seasons.

Sent to all 49ers season ticket holders as part of their annual start-of-season gift box, the digitally enabled patch is a home iron-on patch; the NFC chip is activated by a single tap from any smartphone.

The digitally enabled garment landscape remains a largely white space opportunity for brands, teams, and leagues alike worldwide. This proud partnership between Avery Dennison and the San Francisco 49ers is enabling case-in-point examples of what is possible.

Speaking on the patch, technology, and the opportunity for two official brand partners to work collaboratively toward a shared mission in fan engagement, Kevin Hilton, VP of corporate partnerships at the 49ers, noted, “This effort is a prime example of partner cross-collaboration. We’re grateful to Avery Dennison for their proactive offer of NFC technology to Levi’s, and thrilled that all sides came together to create this commemorative patch as a way to thank season ticket holders in a distinctive, relevant way.”

“The annual Season Ticket Member gift is an important way we show our appreciation to our most loyal fans,” Alex Chang, 49ers chief marketing officer, added.  “For this season’s gift, we are proud to partner with Avery Dennison and Levi’s to provide an exclusive and highly engaging experience leveraging Avery Dennison’s Embelex™  solutions.”

“Fan engagement opportunities are at the core of any professional sports team,” Steve Mason, vice president & general manager Embelex, Avery Dennison, added. “Avery Dennison prides itself on our Digital Solutions which connect the physical Embelex product with our digital capabilities. In a competitive landscape such as professional sports we anticipate further adoption of these 1-to-1 fan engagements and new lines of communication to open. Possibilities are endless.”