Navosa Rugby make bold business move to protect identity

By Alipate Pareti

The Navosa Rugby Union has taken the first step to introduce the use of QR-based merchandising and licensing system to safeguard the use of the team’s trademarked logo by local businesses.

Spearheading the initiative, Director Legal of Navosa Rugby Union Eliki Dakuitoga says the idea came from a real problem they have faced for many years in rugby in Fiji, especially at provincial level. Dakuitoga says system aims to strengthen structure, accountability, and ownership in merchandise production while still allowing villages, supporters, SMEs, and communities to participate.

“For a long time, many people were producing Navosa Rugby merchandise freely. While we appreciate the support, the reality was there was no structure, no quality control, no protection of the Navosa identity, and no financial return going back to the Union itself.”

Beyond his role in rugby governance, Dakuitoga is a prominent local entrepreneur who founded ‘Qaqi Mai’ and ‘Fiji Ride Share System’ (Virtual Bus Stop). Through those innovative ideas, he saw how QR technology could be used not just for transport or verification, but also for identity and traceability. “That is where the idea started. What if every Navosa product had its own identity? And from there, the concept of ‘One QR = One Product’ was developed,” he said.

Since its launch, Dakuitoga says the reaction and engagement from the Navosa Rugby supporters and stakeholders has been very positive. “At first, many people were surprised because this is something new in Fiji rugby. Once people understood that the system was not designed to stop them from participating but instead to include them properly within a controlled structure, support started growing quickly.”

“One of the biggest positive signs for us was that many existing producers who had already been making Navosa merchandise came forward voluntarily to join the system.”

Dakuitoga says the initiative has  15 applicants ranging from villages and supporter groups to SMEs and even corporate interests; a strong indication that there was already demand for a more organised system.

In order to change the mindsets of those who were more reluctant and help them understand the new digital initiative, Dakuitoga said the biggest thing was communication. “We avoided using too much technical language and instead explained the system in simple practical terms so people could understand. For example, we tell people a QR code is simply the name tag of the product. So one shirt = one QR. That simple explanation helped many people understand quickly,” he said

“We also explained that the system is not about control for the sake of control. It is about protecting the Navosa identity, building trust, and ensuring the Union also benefits from merchandise carrying its name.”

Dakuitoga emphasised that through developing and testing Qaqi Mai he learned that technology only works if ordinary people can understand and use it easily.

“Through Qaqi Mai, we learned a lot about digital systems, QR behaviour, public engagement, and how people react to technology in real life. That experience helped shape this project to remain very simple and practical,” he said.

Instead of creating a complicated system, Dakuitoga says they focused on simple QR verification, easy onboarding, and community participation.

He says the types of products that the Navosa Rugby aims to explore using the system include T-shirts, caps, hoodies, polos, and other supporter merchandise. Only the licensed producers will be allowed to use these products.

As it is still in the pilot phase, the system works through QR allocation rather than automatic deductions per sale. “Each QR code represents one approved product. The producer purchases QR allocations from the Union before production. For example:

100 QR codes = permission for 100 products.” This means that the Navosa Rugby Union will earn from the QR allocation itself before products even enter the market.

In the future, Dakuitoga indicated they will look to introduce more advanced dynamic QR systems which may allow deeper tracking, verification, and automated reporting features. But for now they are deliberately keeping it simple.

In April, the Navosa Rugby scheduled a month of free subscription for the QR logo licensing to help applicants and interested parties come on board.

“The one-month waiver was introduced mainly to encourage those already producing Navosa merchandise informally to come into the official system. It worked well because many existing producers joined during that period.”

Right now, the cost of purchasing licensing is set at $100 annually for village and supporter groups while SME licenses are at $300 annually under the standard structure.

However, Dakuitoga said the QR allocations themselves still carry a cost under the system. They have received 7 local licensee applicants to date to become Navosa merch suppliers.

Dakuitoga says while no formal commercial market study was done to gauge the marketability of their product, the production and sale of Navosa Rugby merchandise without any formal existing system was a strong indicator for them.

“For us it was already visible on the ground and it showed there was a strong community demand and identity value attached to the Navosa Rugby brand. It was less about trying to create demand from nothing, and more about organising and structuring an already active informal market,” he said.

Dakuitoga is cautious about making too many predictions about how much will be raised in the longer term. “Right now, we are being careful not to overstate projections because the system is still in the pilot phase.”

“The current focus is more building the structure correctly, capturing participation, and establishing trust in the system. However, if adoption continues growing across villages, SMEs, supporters, and future official merchandise partnerships, we believe this initiative has the potential to become a sustainable long-term revenue stream for the Union. More importantly, beyond just revenue, we see this as building identity, control, accountability, and a long-term commercial foundation for Navosa Rugby,” he said.