Black Friday bonanza. Check out the six biggest retail technology news stories of the week
It’s Friday, the weekend is almost upon us, so let’s kick back and reflect on another eventful week for the retail systems space. Here's your briefing on the most important stories from the past five days, including Shopify, Marks and Spencer, DoorDash, Co-op, and Starship Technologies.
1. Shopify notches up Black Friday Cyber Monday record as shoppers support indie brands
Shopify has announced a record setting Black Friday/Cyber Monday weekend, with sales of $7.5 billion from independent businesses worldwide.
That’s a 19% increase in sales from the $6.3 billion during the same weekend in 2021 (21% on a constant currency basis).
“This year, Black Friday/Cyber Monday showed us once again that consumers are voting with their wallets to support the independent brands they love,” says Harley Finkelstein, President at Shopify.
“We saw record level shopping happening across all channels this weekend, proving businesses that meet their customers where they are, whether that’s online or in-person, will earn their loyalty in return.”
2. Kingfisher taps Fluent Commerce OMS tech, starting with B&Q roll-out
Kingfisher is to deploy Fluent Commerce’s Order Management System (OMS), with the aim of supporting the Group’s online retail business and enhancing customer experience.
The solution will first be rolled out at B&Q.
Integrating the new platform with the latter’s existing architecture is being led by Valtech in collaboration with Kingfisher Group, with deployment first taking place in the UK.
3. Locus Robotics bags $117m in Series F funding, closes in on $2bn valuation
Locus Robotics, a specialist in autonomous mobile robots for fulfilment and distribution warehouses, has secured more than $117 million in Series F funding, led by Goldman Sachs Asset Management and G2 Venture Partners.
As part of this, Mark Midle, Managing Director, Goldman Sachs, and Zach Barasz, Partner, G2 Venture Partners, will join the Locus board of directors.
The funding round brings its valuation close to $2 billion.
4. Buy not build: Marks and Spencer snaps up Thread fashion technology know how
Marks and Spencer has bought the intellectual property of Thread, the fashion personalisation website which recently went into administration.
The pre-pack deal includes Thread’s source codes and algorithms that will be integrated into the M&S site.
The retailer will also hire 30 of Thread’s staff, including founders Kieran O’Neill and Ben Phillips.
5. Robots up north: Starship Technologies and Co-op bring autonomous food delivery to Leeds
Starship Technologies has partnered with Leeds City Council and the Co-op to bring autonomous grocery delivery to the streets of Leeds.
The service will be available to 20,000 residents initially within the Adel and Tinshill area of Leeds.
Orders are made through the Starship app, which is available for download on iOS and Android, with groceries picked in local Co-op stores on Spen Lane, Tinshill and Otley Road, Adel, for rapid delivery.
The expansion in the north of England for the first time follows the introduction of autonomous deliveries in Milton Keynes, Bedford, Northampton, Cambourne, and most recently Cambridge.
6. DoorDash CEO Tony Xu all apologies as he lays off 1,250 employees
Rapid delivery big hitter, DoorDash, is laying off 1,250 people as it looks to rein in costs.
CEO Tony Xu said in a message to employees: “This is the most difficult change to DoorDash that I’ve had to announce in our almost 10-year history.”
“Today, we are reducing our corporate headcount by approximately 1,250 people and saying goodbye to many talented teammates. If you are among those impacted, I am truly sorry and I apologise to have some of you wake up to this news as opposed to reading it during more normal hours.”
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