Editor’s Note
SBI Traceability’s SHIMENAWA service has been adopted by LFC JAPAN for its natural turquoise jewelry, enabling digital guarantee cards to enhance product value and consumer trust.
SBI Traceability Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director: Fumihiko Hayashiguchi; hereinafter ‘the Company’) announces that its traceability service ‘SHIMENAWA’ has been adopted for natural turquoise jewelry sold by the jewelry brand ‘LFC JAPAN,’ operated by Locus Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Konan City, Shiga Prefecture; Representative Director: Kiyomi Hoshi; hereinafter ‘Locus’).
LFC JAPAN handles jewelry items made from natural turquoise, each with unique characteristics. Previously, the brand created and issued paper guarantee cards detailing origin and designer information for each product. However, paper-based management posed challenges in long-term storage of product-linked information, post-purchase reference, and information transfer during secondary distribution.
To address these issues, Locus decided to introduce digital guarantee cards (gemstone authentication certificates) combining blockchain technology and NFC tags. This approach—digitally and centrally managing authenticity and provenance information for each unique turquoise jewelry item—is pioneering in the industry and represents a unique application for the brand. It clarifies authenticity and provenance for each product, establishing an environment where buyers can appropriately verify necessary product information.
The guarantee cards equipped with NFC tags, featuring the Company’s ‘SHIMENAWA’ service, link a unique ID assigned to each item with product information recorded on the blockchain in a tamper-resistant manner, enabling centralized digital management. This allows continuous management and reference of background and production information for each product even after purchase, realizing an operational foundation that visualizes product value and stories over the long term.
The Company aims to provide an environment where information linked to physical assets is properly recorded and managed, allowing buyers and businesses to verify information in a trustworthy manner. In the future, the Company plans to apply this guarantee card mechanism to offer services that enable proper information transfer and verification during secondary distribution using ‘SHIMENAWA.’
By tapping the NFC-equipped card with a smartphone, users can access various product-linked information and background content.
SHIMENAWA is a traceability service that uses IC tags (RFID/NFC) and blockchain technology to assign unique IDs to physical assets or cards, centrally recording and managing related information. It supports various management needs, including authenticity verification, recording usage/distribution history, digital content delivery via tags, and inbound/outbound/inventory management.
For technical details and specifications of SHIMENAWA’s functions, please refer to the official website: https://www.sbitraceability.co.jp/
*1: ‘Blockchain’ refers to a tamper-resistant data structure using electronic signatures and hash pointers to share and manage data change histories.
*2: ‘RFID’ stands for Radio Frequency Identification, an automatic identification technology that reads information wirelessly via radio waves, capable of batch-reading tag information attached to objects.
*3: ‘NFC’ stands for Near Field Communication, a wireless communication standard for short-range (a few centimeters) data exchange between compatible IC tags and devices like smartphones.
*4: ‘SHIMENAWA’ uses dedicated NFC tags with logos, jointly developed with Uni Tag Co., Ltd.
[Company Overview]
■ Locus Co., Ltd.
Location: 1-2 Chuo, Konan City, Shiga Prefecture
Representative: Kiyomi Hoshi, President and Representative Director
URL: https://store.lfc-japan.jp/
■ SBI Traceability Co., Ltd.
Location: Izumi Garden Tower, 1-6-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Representative: Fumihiko Hayashiguchi, Representative Director
URL: https://www.sbitraceability.co.jp/
■ Uni Tag Co., Ltd.
Location: Inside KISCO Co., Ltd. Tokyo Head Office, 4-11-2 Nihonbashi Honcho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo
Representative: Takuya Hanno, President and Representative Director
URL: https://www.unitag.co.jp/
