The retail technology week in numbers
$539.5 million…Cubic Transportation Systems (CTS) has been selected by the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to replace the MetroCard with a contactless payment system derived from the one designed and built in-house by Transport for London (TfL). The base contract award is $539.5 million with additional options of $33.9 million.
90 million…Amazon Prime now has 90 million members Stateside, according to Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) data.
200…This year’s Poppy Appeal will, for the first time on a large scale, give Brits the chance to donate via contactless card. The Royal British Legion, in partnership with Cardnet, is piloting the scheme with 200 mobile donation terminals across the UK, alongside the traditional cash collecting tins. The terminals will have three pre-set donation levels of £2, £3 and £5.
14%...British consumers no longer see the High Street as just somewhere to make a purchase, opting instead to ‘shop and stay’ at retailers that offer engaging and entertaining experiences. According to Barclaycard research, those who are tapping into the growth of the “experience economy” by hosting events and providing entertainment in their physical stores have seen annual turnover increase by an average of 14%.
£8.47…SPAR is partnering with Zapper to launch its mobile payments and loyalty app into multiple stores, starting in the South West this month. Shoppers open the app, scan a QR code at the till and payment, including voucher redemption and loyalty card updates, is then processed.
Jon Birt, Retail Director, Zapper UK, comments: “We are SPAR UK’s first app partner to deliver a seamless loyalty and smarter marketing platform. This will further assist retailers in understanding today’s convenience shopper’s needs, all delivered by the ease of quick mobile payments. With the average shopper spending £8.47 when they pay with the app, it is clear Zapper is transforming the way shoppers pay and receive rewards.”
$40 million…Online food ordering service, ChowNow, has closed a $20 million Series B round led by Catalyst Investors, bringing its total funding to $40 million.
400%...Fashion retailer LUISAVIAROMA has implemented Emarsys’ AI-optimised marketing platform, including the newly launched Web Channel solution and Predict (web and email), Send Time Optimisation, Automation Centre and Smart Insight.
“The value of our engagement with Emarsys is based on significant ROI achieved from the personalisation and omnichannel experience that their platform provides. Optimisation through additional embedded AI capabilities has only contributed further to this success,” says Nicola Antonelli, Head of Marketing at LUISAVIAROMA.COM. “It was therefore an easy decision for us to implement a new AI-optimised channel that would provide greater levels of engagement and personalisation. Initial Web Channel campaigns have generated impressive results, including interaction with 100% more pages per session and 150% longer sessions. This resulted, most importantly, in a conversion rate 400% higher than before we implemented Emarsys Web Channel on our website.”
62%...Marks & Spencer is Britain’s most authentic brand, according to Cohn & Wolfe research which also found that only one in four people feel like brands can be trusted. The study, which surveyed 15,000 consumers across 15 markets, flags up the opportunity for companies to overcome this issue, with 62% of respondents saying they would be more interested in buying from organisations they believe to be authentic.