The retail technology week in numbers

Do you like numbers? Do you like retail technology? Then this is the article for you.

$113 million…Swedish buy now, pay later specialist, Klarna, has hooked over seven million customers in the UK, an increase of 2x compared to last year.

At the same time, however, it reported a loss of $113 million on revenues of $740 million in 2019. This is its first loss since the company was founded 15 years ago. Growth in new markets meant more first time customers who have proved less reliable with repayments.

$35 million…Klarna rival Afterpay has announced its results for the six-month period ended 31st December 2019.

The Australian company posted a $35 million loss, a 66% wider loss than the same period a year ago, as it pursued growth in the US and UK markets.

$100 million…US-based venture capital firm Fifth Wall has closed a $100 million vehicle labelled the Retail Fund. This is aimed at online players wanting to add physical stores to their arsenals.

$110 million…Israeli micro-fulfilment startup Fabric, formerly known as CommonSense Robotics, has added Evolv Ventures, the investment arm of Kraft Heinz, to its $110 million Series B funding round.

7,770…Amazon has opened its first Amazon Go Grocery store in Seattle.

The 7,700-square-foot space taps cameras, shelf sensors and software to allow shoppers to pick up items and walk out without stopping to pay or scan merchandise. Accounts are automatically charged through a smartphone app when they exit.

1…Tesco has opened its first cashless store, situated in High Holborn, London.

$8 million…London-based CX startup Chattermill has closed an $8 million Series A round.

$14 million…Kenya-based B2B e-commerce startup Sokowatch has raised $14 million in Series A funding.

£13 billion...A full UK roll-out of gigabit broadband would provide a boost to the economy of 0.7% of GDP by 2025, the equivalent of over £13 billion, or an extra £217 per person a year. That’s according to research by Public First on behalf of Internet Association.

$75 million…Indian venture BharatPe has announced a $75 million Series C funding round.

$10 million…E-commerce big hitter Shopify has become a member of Facebook’s Libra Association. It will stump up at least $10 million and operate a node that processes transactions for Facebook’s stablecoin project.

53%…Retailers need to diversify and reimagine traditional points of payment in-store and online, according to a report by RetailEXPO.

Its research, involving 2,000 UK consumers, revealed that year-on-year in-store queues remain the biggest irritation with 53% identifying long lines to pay as the primary cause of in-store basket abandonment.

3.5%…US startup Lolli has partnered with Bass Pro Shops, enabling people to earn 3.5% Bitcoin back when shopping online.