The retail technology space and the coronavirus crisis
Retail Technology Innovation Hub rounds up the key Covid-19 developments from last week.
The coronavirus outbreak has cemented contactless as the preferred way to make UK in-store payments, according to Barclaycard.
Its research has contactless accounting for 88.6% of all eligible card transactions (that is, up to £30 prior to April and £45 after April) in 2020.
PrettyLittleThing, part of the boohoo group, has appointed Rise at Seven as its search and digital PR agency to support growth plans across the UK and US markets.
Checkout-free technologies startup, Zippin, has hired Gary Jacobus as Senior Vice President, Business Development.
Dixons Carphone and Asda are helping to get remote learning laptops to kids during the coronavirus lockdown
74% of businesses are boosting their marketing and consumer research budgets this year, to better reach potential customers, according to new research from Stravito.
A.S. Watson Group and mobile app venture Grab are laying claim to “the largest online and offline health and beauty partnership in Southeast Asia”.
The pair will collaborate across multiple services, starting with GrabExpress, GrabMart and GrabPay, to expand Watsons’ online reach in Southeast Asia.
Amazon has told the new US President, Joe Biden, that it is ready to assist him in reaching the goal of vaccinating 100 million Americans in the first 100 days of his administration.
London Dynamics has signed a partnership with Capita Scaling Partner (CSP) to sell its augmented reality software to the luxury goods market.
Kroger is testing out Caper's artificial intelligence powered shopping cart at a Cincinnati store in the US.
Shoppers can use a KroGO branded smart cart to scan items and pay for them, eliminating the need to stand in line and checkout.
Hermes UK says that it delivered 630 million parcels in 2020. This is an increase of 250 million from the 2019 figure.
Glovo has announced a strategic partnership with Swiss real estate firm, Stoneweg, as the Barcelona-based on demand delivery platform expands its newly launched Q-Commerce division.
Stoneweg will invest €100 million in building and refurbishing prime city real estate in some of Glovo’s key markets.
Tesco’s Pay+ mobile payment app, which launched in 2017, surpassed £1 billion in payments shortly before Christmas.
ChannelEngine, a marketplace integration platform for e-commerce players, has landed €5 million in Series A funding led by INKEF Capital, with participation from existing investor Airbridge Equity Partners.
Dixons Carphone has given everyone in its business a free, six-month subscription to Calm, an app for lowering stress and boosting wellbeing.
The UK Domain, a specialist in small business advice, has revealed the top 100 websites of 2020 in a new study that highlights how our internet behaviours have changed during the coronavirus outbreak.
There were 25 websites in the top 100 that fell into the e-commerce space.
AC Milan has announced the impending launch of an $ACM fan token on the Chiliz blockchain.
Holders will be able to use their tokens to redeem various exclusive rewards and take part in interactive activities with the Italian football giant and its players.
Ocucon is offering its award winning Occupi occupancy management system to support the NHS’s Covid-19 vaccination and rapid testing programme.
Dunelm has deployed JRNI powered curbside and deliver to car functionality at its 170 superstores across England, Scotland and Wales.
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