Luxury Watches: An Authenticated Resale Marketplace

[Proposal setup] Proposal title

Please provide your proposal title

Luxury Watches: An Authenticated Resale Marketplace

[Proposal Summary] Budget Information

Enter the amount of funding you are requesting in ADA

190000

[Proposal Summary] Time

Please specify how many months you expect your project to last

11

[Proposal Summary] Translation Information

Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated

No

Original Language

en

[Proposal Summary] Problem Statement

What is the problem you want to solve?

The luxury watch resale market is flooded with fake products. Manual expert checks are the main defense, yet they are valid only at inspection time and fail to protect buyers afterward.

[Proposal Summary] Supporting Documentation

Supporting links

• https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AOeAeBpuu8XqHlM99D8dbs6SBERRGgBg/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=106703990256890456574&rtpof=true&sd=true
,
• https://drive.google.com/file/d/1r9SsIc44QLwHbibk5IYnQXQTgalOGfHH/view?usp=sharing

[Proposal Summary] Project Dependencies

Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

No

Describe any dependencies or write 'No dependencies'

No formal technical or organizational dependencies. Watch experts will be consulted on a non-exclusive basis for validation and user research.

[Proposal Summary] Project Open Source

Will your project's outputs be fully open source?

No

Please provide details on the intellectual property (IP) status of your project outputs, including whether they will be released as open source or retained under another licence.

While some components will remain proprietary to protect sensitive business logic, privacy, and security, key elements will be fully open source. All smart contracts for product authentication and ownership transfer will be released under the MIT license, enabling community review, reuse, and extension. This hybrid approach supports Cardano ecosystem growth while preserving a competitive edge in the luxury market.

[Theme Selection] Theme

Please choose the most relevant theme and tag related to the outcomes of your proposal

Marketplace

[Campaign Category] Category Questions

Describe what makes your idea innovative compared to what has been previously launched in the market (whether by you or others).

Existing expert authentication only proves a watch is real at the moment of inspection. We permanently bind the verification to the physical watch using a tamper-evident NFC seal that remains on the product until it is sold, ensuring no manipulation occurs after the check. An on-chain certificate remains valid as long as the NFC seal is intact.

This same mechanism powers a dedicated marketplace where these authenticated watches can be safely resold with persistent trust, offering an alternative to high-commission second-hand retailers.

Describe what your prototype or MVP will demonstrate, and where it can be accessed.

The MVP will demonstrate how expert authentication combined with a tamper-evident NFC seal generates an on-chain certificate proving a watch or accessory’s authenticity. It will also include a lightweight marketplace where these authenticated items can be listed, physically verified via smartphone scan, and transferred with on-chain ownership. The MVP will be accessible via a web app.

Describe realistic measures of success, ideally with on-chain metrics.

Success will be measured in a controlled pilot environment using on-chain metrics: number of authenticated watches and accessories issued with on-chain certificates, number of NFC seals activated and verified, and number of ownership transfers simulated on-chain. Additional success indicators include successful expert workflows and end-to-end verification during physical inspection.

[Your Project and Solution] Solution

Please describe your proposed solution and how it addresses the problem

Our solution creates a persistent, tamper-evident link between a physical luxury watch and its digital certificate of authenticity, enabling trusted post-market resale.

The process works as follows:

Expert Physical Authentication

A certified watch expert physically inspects and authenticates the watch using traditional professional methods (movement, case, serials, condition).

Tamper-Evident NFC Sealing

Once authenticated, the expert applies a tamper-evident NFC seal to the watch. This seal physically binds the verification to the specific product and prevents post-inspection substitution or manipulation.

On-Chain Certificate Creation

The combination of: expert validation, and the unique NFC seal applied by the expert generates a blockchain-based certificate of authenticity. This certificate is permanently linked to the specific sealed watch.

Persistent Authenticity Guarantee

As long as the NFC seal remains intact, the system recognizes the watch as authentic.

If the seal is removed, damaged, or tampered with, the on-chain certificate is flagged as invalid by the system.

Marketplace Integration for Trusted Resale

The authenticated watch can then be listed on the marketplace, where buyers can rely on:

The expert verification,

The intact NFC seal,

And the on-chain certificate

as persistent proof that the watch is the same verified product.

Ownership & Trust Transfer

Upon resale, ownership is transferred on-chain together with the certificate, allowing authenticity and provenance to persist across multiple owners without repeating the full authentication process each time.

Seamless Luxury User Experience

All blockchain operations run invisibly in the background. Buyers, sellers, and experts do not manage wallets, private keys, or transactions directly. The experience is designed to match luxury standards: simple, elegant, and frictionless, while Cardano secures authenticity and ownership behind the scenes.

This approach transforms momentary expert authentication into a persistent, transferable trust system for luxury watches and accessories.

[Your Project and Solution] Impact

Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

This project demonstrates a strong real-world use case for Cardano’s core capabilities: blockchain for trust, NFTs for unique asset identity, smart contracts for ownership transfer, and optional ZK privacy for owner protection.

Key impacts on the Cardano ecosystem:

Real-World Authenticity & Lineage

Proves how Cardano can anchor physical luxury assets to on-chain certificates, enabling persistent authenticity and traceable ownership history.

Privacy-Preserving Ownership Transfer

Shows how smart contracts and ZK-based privacy can enable compliant, private transfers of high-value physical assets.

Reusable Infrastructure

The same architecture can be reused for:

• Other luxury goods (bags, jewelry, art),
• Certified marketplaces,
• Product passports and compliance use cases.

Strategic Entry into the Luxury Market

Positions Cardano as a serious infrastructure layer for the premium resale economy — a sector with real users, real assets, and real economic activity.

Reducing the Blockchain Adoption Barrier Through Luxury-Grade UX

This project directly addresses one of the main barriers to blockchain adoption: complexity of use. By making wallets, keys, and transactions fully invisible to end users, it proves that Cardano can power real-world consumer applications with a simple, elegant, luxury-grade user experience. This significantly lowers the entry barrier for non-crypto-native users and brands.

This project extends Cardano from digital finance into physical asset trust, provenance, and compliant ownership at scale.

[Your Project and Solution] Capabilities & Feasibility

What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

Project Leadership & Market Expertise

The project is led by a founder with over 20 years of experience at the intersection of luxury and technology, including serving as Product & Marketing VP at a global luxury brand and as a serial entrepreneur in tech-driven ventures. This provides deep expertise in luxury ecosystems, authentication challenges, and secondary market dynamics.

Proven Catalyst Delivery Experience

The project is developed by the same team behind LuxeChain, a Catalyst Fund 13 project currently completing its final MVP milestone (submission scheduled for December). All smart contracts, backend modules, and technical documentation have been delivered.

Team Capabilities

The team brings proven experience in:

• Identity systems & authentication
• Smart contract development
• Zero-knowledge integration
• Cross-platform mobile apps
• Real-world backend infrastructure
• Product, UX, and compliance

Technical Lead

Technical development is led by Snehasish Paul (Blockchain & Full Stack Developer, 4+ years of experience), with strong expertise in Cardano smart contracts, wallet integration, and on-chain data architecture, and direct experience building blockchain-based authentication and ownership systems.

Feasibility & Validation

Feasibility will be validated through a controlled MVP pilot demonstrating:

• Expert authentication and NFC sealing workflows
• On-chain certificate issuance
• Tamper verification via NFC
• Simulated ownership transfer within the marketplace

The MVP is intentionally scoped to ensure realistic delivery while proving the full end-to-end trust flow.

[Milestones] Project Milestones

Milestone Title

Architecture & UX Design

Milestone Outputs

• Technical architecture & smart contract specification
• Core user flows (expert validation, NFC sealing, certificate, listing, transfer)
• UI/UX wireframes (expert, seller, buyer)
• Clickable prototype

Acceptance Criteria

• Technical specifications reviewed and approved internally by the project team.
• Wireframes and prototype validated internally for consistency, clarity, and feasibility.
• Usability feedback from at least 5 internal testers covering buyer, seller, and expert flows shows ≥80% positive responses on clarity and navigation.

Evidence of Completion

• Final approved technical specification document (shareable format, e.g., PDF or Google Docs).
• Wireframes and clickable prototype files (Figma or equivalent).
• Internal usability testing report summarizing participant feedback and approval for development readiness (shareable format).

Delivery Month

3

Cost

50000

Progress

20 %

Milestone Title

Expert Authentication, NFC Sealing & On-Chain Certification Implementation

Milestone Outputs

• Full implementation of the expert authentication workflow, including expert identity setup and secure validation process
• Integration of tamper-evident NFC sealing, linked to each authenticated watch or accessory
• Smart-contract logic for on-chain certificate issuance, binding expert validation and NFC seal to a unique digital identity
• Tamper detection and certificate invalidation logic, ensuring post-inspection manipulation automatically voids the authentication status

Acceptance Criteria

• The expert authentication workflow functions end-to-end without manual workarounds
• Each authenticated item is successfully linked to a unique NFC seal and an on-chain certificate
• Simulated tampering with the NFC seal always triggers correct on-chain certificate invalidation
• Internal testing across at least 5 full authentication and tamper scenarios confirms data integrity, security logic, and functional reliability

Evidence of Completion

• Deployed expert authentication and NFC sealing system in a test environment
• On-chain certificate issuance and invalidation transactions verifiable on Cardano testnet
• A detailed internal testing report documenting expert validation flows, NFC sealing, tamper simulations, and successful end-to-end authentication results in a shareable format (PDF or similar)

Delivery Month

6

Cost

40000

Progress

50 %

Milestone Title

Marketplace Implementation & End-to-End Integration

Milestone Outputs

• Implementation of the seller marketplace flow, including listing of authenticated watches and accessories linked to valid on-chain certificates
• Implementation of the buyer marketplace flow, including browsing, viewing certificate status, and physical verification via NFC scan during in-person inspection
• Integration of on-chain ownership transfer, linking marketplace transactions to certificate transfer logic
• Full integration between authentication layer and marketplace layer, ensuring that only sealed and valid items can be listed or transferred

Acceptance Criteria

• Sellers can successfully list only items with a valid, non-tampered on-chain certificate
• Buyers can verify an item’s authentication status and ownership history through the marketplace interface
• Ownership transfer correctly updates the on-chain certificate holder after a simulated transaction
• Internal testing across at least 5 end-to-end buyer–seller scenarios confirms correct integration, data consistency, and trust logic across authentication and marketplace systems

Evidence of Completion

• Deployed marketplace module in a test environment with integrated authentication and certificate verification
• On-chain ownership transfer transactions visible and verifiable on Cardano testnet
• A comprehensive internal integration testing report documenting seller listing, buyer verification, ownership transfer, and edge-case scenarios in a shareable format (PDF or similar)

Delivery Month

9

Cost

40000

Progress

80 %

Milestone Title

End-to-End MVP Deployment

Milestone Outputs

• Deployment of the fully integrated MVP, combining expert authentication, tamper-evident NFC sealing, on-chain certificate issuance, and marketplace listing and verification
• Web-based and/or mobile app interfaces enabling controlled access for expert, seller, and buyer roles
• End-to-end authentication → sealing → listing → verification → ownership transfer flow fully functional in a unified environment
• System monitoring and logging for verification events, certificate status, ownership updates, and marketplace activity

Acceptance Criteria

• At least 1 active expert successfully authenticates and seals products
• At least 25 watches or accessories are authenticated, sealed, and issued with on-chain certificates
• At least 20 users (buyers and sellers) actively participate in the MVP
• At least 25–50 simulated marketplace transactions and ownership transfers are completed on-chain in the MVP environment
• No real payments and no real-world ownership transfer occur — all transactions are simulations for validation purposes only
• Only items with a valid and non-tampered NFC seal can be listed and transferred
• Internal testing across at least 5 full end-to-end MVP scenarios confirms system stability, data consistency, and correct trust enforcement

Evidence of Completion

1. Live hosted MVP web application and/or mobile app interface accessible for review and testing
2. On-chain transactions for certificate creation, verification, and ownership transfer visible on Cardano testnet
3. A final usage and testing report documenting:

• Number of experts, users, products, and transactions
• Verification success rates
• End-to-end marketplace flows

Report delivered in a shareable format (PDF or similar)

Delivery Month

10

Cost

30000

Progress

90 %

Milestone Title

Project Close-out Report & Final Video

Milestone Outputs

• Project Close-Out Report prepared according to Catalyst guidelines, covering all delivered milestones, system components, and validation results.
• Final demonstration video produced according to Catalyst guidelines, showcasing the full end-to-end flow: expert authentication, NFC sealing, on-chain certificate issuance, marketplace listing, buyer verification, and simulated ownership transfer.
• Open-source release of smart contracts, system architecture, and core technical documentation.
• Final web-based and/or mobile app MVP build prepared for community review.

Acceptance Criteria

• The Project Close-Out Report is submitted following the official Catalyst project close-out reporting requirements.
• The final demonstration video is submitted following the official Catalyst project close-out video requirements.
• All open-source materials, including smart contracts and documentation, are uploaded to a public repository.
• The final MVP build is accessible to reviewers and the community via a public download link or hosted access link.

Evidence of Completion

• Link to the final Catalyst-compliant Project Close-Out Report.
• Link to the Catalyst-compliant final demonstration video.
• Public GitHub repository containing open-source smart contracts and documentation.
• Public access link to the final packaged version of the web app and/or mobile app MVP.

Delivery Month

11

Cost

30000

Progress

100 %

[Final Pitch] Budget & Costs

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Total Requested Budget: 190,000

The budget is allocated by milestone to ensure transparent delivery, controlled risk, and measurable progress.

Milestone 1 – Architecture & UX Design | 50,000

Scope covered:

• System architecture & smart contract design
• Expert, buyer, and seller user flows
• UI/UX wireframes and clickable prototype
• Internal usability testing & validation

Cost breakdown (indicative):

• Product & technical architecture: 20,000
• UX/UI design & prototyping: 20,000
• Internal testing & project coordination: 10,000

Milestone 2 – Expert Authentication & NFC Sealing Implementation | 40,000

Scope covered:

• Expert authentication workflow
• NFC sealing integration
• On-chain certificate issuance
• Tamper detection & invalidation logic

Cost breakdown (indicative):

• Smart contract development: 18,000
• Backend & NFC integration: 15,000
• Testing & validation: 7,000

Milestone 3 – Marketplace Implementation & Integration | 40,000

Scope covered:

• Seller and buyer marketplace flows
• Certificate verification in the marketplace
• On-chain ownership transfer integration
• End-to-end system integration testing

Cost breakdown (indicative):

• Frontend marketplace development: 18,000
• Backend & ownership transfer logic: 15,000
• Integration testing: 7,000

Milestone 4 – End-to-End MVP Deployment (Controlled Environment) | 30,000

Scope covered:

• Deployment of the full MVP (web and/or mobile)
• Expert, buyer, and seller access
• Controlled environment with 20 users, 25 products, and 25–50 simulated transactions
• System monitoring and usage reporting

Cost breakdown (indicative):

• MVP deployment & hosting: 12,000
• User onboarding & pilot coordination: 10,000
• Monitoring, analytics & testing: 8,000

Milestone 5 – Project Close-out Report & Final Video | 30,000

Scope covered:

• Final validation of the complete system
• Technical & functional documentation
• Public demo video production
• Open-source release & community handover

Cost breakdown (indicative):

• Documentation & reporting: 10,000
• Demo video production: 8,000
• Final testing, cleanup & open-source release: 12,000

[Final Pitch] Value for Money

How does the cost of the project represent value for the Cardano ecosystem?

This project delivers strong value for money for the Cardano ecosystem by combining real-world adoption, luxury-grade user experience, reusable infrastructure, and cost-efficient execution into a single MVP.

Lowering the Blockchain Adoption Barrier

The project directly addresses one of blockchain’s main barriers: complexity of use. It demonstrates that Cardano can power a user-friendly luxury resale marketplace where authentication, ownership transfer, and certificates run on-chain while remaining invisible to end users.

Luxury-Grade UX/UI & Entry into the Luxury Market

In the luxury sector, user experience is as critical as the product itself. This project proves that Cardano can meet the highest luxury UX standards, enabling its entry into the luxury watches and accessories market, a sector with strong purchasing power, global reach, and high transaction values.

Reusable Infrastructure Across Markets

The authentication, NFC sealing, certificate, and ownership transfer stack can be reused for:

• Other luxury goods (bags, jewelry, art),
• Certified marketplaces,
• Product passports and compliance use cases.

This maximizes long-term ecosystem value from a single investment.

Cost-Efficient, Milestone-Based Delivery

The budget is strictly aligned with measurable milestones, ensuring progressive de-risking, transparent funding usage, and verifiable technical outputs at every stage.

[Self-Assessment] Self-Assessment Checklist

I confirm that evidence of prior research, whitepaper, design, or proof-of-concept is provided.

Yes

I confirm that the proposal includes ecosystem research and uses the findings to either (a) justify its uniqueness over existing solutions or (b) demonstrate the value of its novel approach.

Yes

I confirm that the proposal demonstrates technical capability via verifiable in-house talent or a confirmed development partner (GitHub, LinkedIn, portfolio, etc.)

Yes

I confirm that the proposer and all team members are in good standing with prior Catalyst projects.

Yes

I confirm that the proposal clearly defines the problem and the value of the on-chain utility.

Yes

I confirm that the primary goal of the proposal is a working prototype deployed on at least a Cardano testnet.

Yes

I confirm that the proposal outlines a credible and clear technical plan and architecture.

Yes

I confirm that the budget and timeline (≤ 12 months) are realistic for the proposed work.

Yes

I confirm that the proposal includes a community engagement and feedback plan to amplify prototype adoption with the Cardano ecosystem.

Yes

I confirm that the budget is for future development only; excludes retroactive funding, incentives, giveaways, re-granting, or sub-treasuries.

Yes

[Required Acknowledgements] Consent & Confirmation

I Agree

Yes