The retail technology week in numbers
50…B&M is planning to open 50 new stores this year. The discount goods retailer said profit before tax in the year to 30th March came in at £249.4 million - a rise of almost 9% on the previous year.
$37 million…US startup Modsy has raised $37 million in a series C funding round led by TCV, with participation from Norwest Venture Partners, Advance Venture Partners, and Comcast Ventures.
3…Retail Assist has announced a contract renewal with Harvey Nichols. Their relationship began in 2004. It has now been extended for another three years and involves the use of Merret, Retail Assist’s omnichannel supply chain solution.
300…Starbucks has started to roll-out its mobile order and pay offering, Starbucks Now, to 300 stores in Beijing and Shanghai and plans to introduce it across China over the next year.
200…Discount chain operator Stein Mart is to install Amazon Hub lockers in nearly 200 stores across 28 US states.
200…Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com has applied for over 200 blockchain patents, according to a report by Securities Daily News.
Its rival Alibaba Group has, meanwhile, applied for 262 patents in this space, as recorded by the Intellectual Property Center of China Information and Communication.
$80 million…This week marked the nine-year anniversary of the first Bitcoin transaction.
Back in 2010, Laszlo Hanyecz, aka ‘Bitcoin Pizza Guy’, bought two Papa John's pizzas (worth $30) for 10,000 BTC. At the time, that seemed like a bargain, given Bitcoin’s low value. However, fast forward to the present day and one BTC is worth about $8,000. So, approximately $80 million for some posh cheese on toast. Ouch!
83% of high intent shoppers have abandoned a purchase because there was simply too much choice online, leaving them overwhelmed, according to iAdvize research.
52…Scandinavian furniture retailer Jysk has announced a five-year growth plan that will see its UK store portfolio increase to 52 by August 2024.
24…JD Sports has selected Eurostop tech for 24 of its stores across Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.
5.2%…The UK online retail sector experienced a disappointing first quarter, and Easter failed to deliver a turnaround in fortunes, with April recording sales growth of just 5.2% YoY, according to research from IMRG and Capgemini.
1p…UK shoppers should pay a transaction charge of 1p when they use self-service checkout machines, as part of a drive to heal generational divisions.
That’s a proposal put forward by the parliamentary panel on social integration, chaired by Chuka Umunna. The aim is "to counteract potential damage caused by a lack of everyday contact between people" and to raise money for intergenerational projects.
58 million…Walmart has topped Starbucks and Amazon in a new mobile app adoption study.
Research from Cornerstone Advisors and StrategyCorps reveals that more than 58 million Americans have the Walmart mobile app on their smartphone. Amazon is in second place with 54 million. Uber lands in third (52 million) and Starbucks takes fourth spot (44 million).
1…Starbucks has opened its first Signing Store in Guangzhou, China.
73% of UK consumers would spend more time and money in stores that offered up experiences as well as just product, according to research carried out by RetailEXPO.
80%…L’Oréal will next month launch its La Roche-Posay’s Effaclar Spotscan app on Alibaba’s Tmall and Taobao platforms. It says that, with 80% of young people suffering from acne and only one dermatologist per 60,000 habitants available in China, there is an increasing demand for accessible, accurate and professional advice in this area.
£40 million...FinTech startup Wagestream has closed a £15 million series A funding round, co-led by venture capital investors Balderton Capital and Northzone.
In addition, the venture snagged a credit facility of up to £25 from Shawbrook Bank. At £40 million, Wagestream says the total amount raised marks the largest single social impact investment to date in the UK.
850…Ocado has launched a redundancy process after the online grocer said it would take two years to rebuild a Hampshire distribution centre destroyed in a fire. This will affect just under half the 850-strong workforce.
€4 million…BrandHouse, a London-based online platform for fast moving consumer goods, has landed €4 million in Series A funding.
£12.6 billion…The UK online shopping boom saw courier and express delivery sales increase by 12% to reach £12.6 billion in 2018, according to Mintel research.
