Zippin teams with Azbuka Vkusa for European debut

US startup Zippin has launched in Europe with what it labels “the first checkout-free store within a store”.

It has partnered on this with Sberbank, Visa and Azbuka Vkusa, a grocery retailer in Russia. The store within a store is located inside one of the latter’s locations in Moscow. Azbuka Vkusa converted one of the aisles for the initiative.

Also of interest: Q&A: Krishna Motukuri, CEO and Co-founder, Zippin

Shoppers can use Sberbank’s Take & Go mobile app with a linked credit card. They check-in at the entrance with a QR code, shop and exit when done.

Further details here.

Late last year, Zippin closed a $12 million Series A funding round, led by Evolv Ventures. 

Other investors included SAP.iO, Scrum Ventures, Arca Continental, and Nomura Research Institute and NTT DOCOMO Ventures.

That took Zippin’s total funding to $15 million. It previously received an undisclosed strategic investment from Braziilan retailer Lojas Americanas, whose Ame Go convenience stores are powered by the company’s technology.

The venture also introduced Zippin Cube, a modular, pre-fabricated cashierless store-in-a-box, roughly 300 – 500 sq. ft., which was running in the Golden 1 Center Arena in Sacramento, California.

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