The retail technology space during the coronavirus pandemic
Retail Technology Innovation Hub rounds up the key Covid-19 developments from last week.
With the UK still in coronavirus lockdown, year-on-year retail footfall decreased by 73.5% in February, with only a 3.4 percentage point improvement from January.
That’s according to research from the BRC and Sensormatic IQ.
Canada-based mobile commerce startup Snapcommerce has raised $85 million in a funding round led by Inovia Capital and Lion Capital.
Accenture has acquired REPL Group, a UK-based technology consultancy specialising in solutions for supply chain, workforce management, store operations and customer experiences.
Waitrose has opened a new customer fulfilment centre in Greenford, West London.
When fully running later in the year, this will deliver 25,000 weekly e-commerce orders, helping to offer five times more online slots each week in London than before the coronavirus pandemic.
A fifth of UK shoppers have been unable to return something after losing or damaging a paper receipt, according to research from flux.
They lost an average of £54 each the last time this happened to them, with some claiming they were unable to return items worth up to £1,800.
Bookshop.org says that it has generated over £1 million in profit for UK indie booksellers in just over four months of trading, with 410 retailers and 200k+ customers tapping into the new platform to date.
Currys PC World has launched ShopLive Events, an initiative that aims to put some of the electrical retailer’s most popular tech to the test.
This kicked off last week, with TV personality, Oliver Proudlock and his wife, model and influencer Emma Louise Connolly, competing against each other to find the best cook in the relationship.
UK wholesaler, Bestway, is officially making Jisp’s mobile technology available to all its retail partners and corporate stores following a trial period.
The pair partnered in November 2020, providing, via Jisp’s app, home delivery and Click & Collect services, with the trial officially commencing in January 2021.
US grocery delivery venture Instacart has raised $265 million from its existing investors, including Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, and D1 Capital Partners.
This values the company at $39 billion, up from $17.8 billion at the time of its previous fundraise, which closed in November last year.
Dutch online-only supermarket, Crisp, has raised €30 million in a Series B round led by Target Global.
Crisp has bagged a total of €46 million in funding since launching in 2018.
HNI Corporation and Marxent have announced the release of several new 3D commerce apps.
These include a 3D Product Configurator for Hearth & Home Technologies, the HON Now 3D Room Planner and the mobile friendly HON Home Office Scene Configurator - all pitched at consumers who are working and shopping from home.
43% of UK retail and hospitality businesses wanted to see the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, prioritise an extension of coronavirus business loans and grants in the Spring Budget, according to research from Epos Now.
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