Top 10: last week’s most read retail technology articles
These are the RTIH articles that caught your fancy last week, including Walmart, Roblox, Alibaba Group, No So Dark, and Currys.
Walmart makes a big move in the Roblox metaverse
Walmart is launching two new immersive experiences on the Roblox metaverse platform: Walmart Land and Walmart’s Universe of Play.
The former will bring fashion, style, beauty and entertainment items to the Roblox community of over 52 million daily users.
The latter, meanwhile, is pitched as “the ultimate virtual toy destination in Roblox, just in time for those oh-so-real holiday wish lists”.
Developed alongside Journey, who supported development, and Publicis Groupe’s Power of One Agency, Walmart’s lead creative and media agency, the experiences offer Roblox users the chance to “engage and interact with all the top items everybody wants from Walmart - in a virtual way”.
Delivering a flawless customer experience wherever, however, and whenever people shop
By Mike Wager, Product Marketing Manager, Software Test Automation at Keysight Technologies.
Last week’s biggest retail technology plays at a glance
RTIH rounds up the stand out retail systems deals, deployments and pilots from the past seven days. Featuring Lowe’s, Marks & Spencer, Ikea, Walmart, and Alibaba Group.
Star Concessions teams with Amazon on checkout-free store at DFW International Airport
Star Concessions has announced the opening of Grab & Fly, a checkout-free shopping experience at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport (DFW).
Powered by Amazon’s Just Walk Out technology, this lets people grab what they need and leave the store, without having to wait in checkout lines.
buymie announces Woodie’s same-day delivery tie up
Woodie’s, a DIY, home and garden retailer, is partnering with same-day delivery platform buymie.
From 10th October, customers in South East Dublin can use buymie’s personal shopping services to order 20,000 DIY and home improvement products from their nearest Woodie’s store and receive items to their doorstep in as little as two hours.
Alibaba Group announces luxury shopping experience in the metaverse
Alibaba Group’s Tmall Luxury Pavilion platform has hosted an augmented reality fashion show and introduced a Meta Pass, which confers priority digital access to brands’ products.
In recent years, the platform has deployed 3D shopping, augmented reality and virtual reality try-ons for products, digital avatars and digital collectibles.
Also, in Shanghai, luxury executives haver attended an awards ceremony and explored an exhibition on extended reality.
“Before metaverse became a buzzword, we had already transformed this buzzword into a commercial reality,” says Janet Wang, Head of Alibaba’s luxury division.
Currys boosts in-store and online customer experience
Currys has gone live with a more connected service across all of its channels that, the technology retailer says, will “provide personalised journeys and customer insights on a massive scale”.
Over the last 16 months, Currys has embarked on a mission to transform into a “best in class, digital first omnichannel retailer”.
This has seen it re-platform and upgrade its website, enhance its ShopLive service (a video commerce channel), as well as deliver a new Colleague Hub in all of its UK stores.
The latter enables its frontline staff to gain visibility of the customer from the moment they step into a store.
This includes the online customer history, a log of all their interactions, and any items they’ve put in their online shopping cart, all displayed in real-time.
It also acts as a one stop shop for store colleagues with fast access to knowledge articles, and tasks so they can support each customer.
Amazon Fresh UK checkout-free stores cut prices amid cost of living crisis
Amazon Fresh has launched a Price Cut promotion in the UK.
Its 19 Just Walk Out technology powered stores have dropped the prices of over 200 products.
Amazon says that this is to “help customers save on their home essentials whilst the cost of living crisis puts further pressure on household costs”.
Displayforce bags €500,000 in funding for retail media solution
Hong Kong-based retail media startup Displayforce has raised €500,000 in a pre-seed round involving NL Platform.
Displayforce.has developed an AI powered in-store performance marketing automatisation tool.
This makes it possible to measure and engage shoppers, personalise marketing communication offline, and generate new revenue through programmatic advertising.
The aim is to fill the gap between online and offline marketing with an understanding of audiences, relevant messaging, and understanding different retail media formats.
Not So Dark bags $80 million in Series B funding round
French FoodTech startup Not So Dark has raised $80 million in Series B funding, led by Kharis Capital and Verlinvest, in partnership with Conviviality Ventures.
The round brings the firm’s total funding to date to $105 million.
Not So Dark launched in 2020 with delivery only menus sold on Uber Eats and Deliveroo. It has since been deployed across France with tech centric operations running out of its own dark kitchens.
Founders Clément Benoit (former Founder and CEO of Stuart) and Alexandre Haggai now aim to pivot the business around traditional restaurants instead of dedicated dark kitchens.
