RTIH brings you the retail technology week in numbers
Do you like numbers? Do you like retail systems news? Then this is the article for you. Including Carrefour UAE, Prada, Chipotle, Marks and Spencer, Shoptalk Europe, and Victoria’s Secret.
2…Chick-fil-A has enlisted Refraction AI to deploy a fleet of the startup’s self-driving vehicles to two of its restaurants in downtown Austin, Texas.
The commercial pilot will begin in late June.
98…Mexican fast food chain Chipotle is now accepting cryptocurrency payments through Flexa at its 2,950+ USA-based restaurants.
Chipotle will offer all the 98 cryptocurrencies Flexa currently supports, including Bitcoin, Ethereum and seven US dollar pegged stablecoins.
$77 million…Customer engagement platform, MoEngage, has raised $77 million in a Series E funding round led by Goldman Sachs Asset Management and B Capital.
There was also participation from the company’s existing investors, Steadview Capital, Multiples Alternate Asset Management, Eight Roads Ventures, and Matrix Partners India.
1…Backed by Swedish retail giants Ingka Group and H&M, the first Atelier100 space has opened its doors to showcase London-based designers and creatives.
The store is located at Livat Hammersmith. It is pitched as a new sustainable and hyper-local approach to retail.
Atelier100 has been designed not only as a space in which to sell products but also to host workshops, talks and events. .
The project launched with an open call for creatives, makers and manufacturers living within 100km of central London to share their innovative product ideas.
6…Carrefour UAE, which is owned and operated by Majid Al Futtaim, is to offer a sustainable alternative to plastic bags in response to new government policy banning the use of single-use plastic.
The retailer will provide plant-based bags made of starch at its checkout counters.
These will be available for 25 fils at Carrefour stores across Abu Dhabi and Al Ain from 1st June and in Dubai as of 1st July. They take less than six months to fully decompose.
1,301…Retail workers were subjected to a huge rise in violence and abuse over the coronavirus pandemic, with incidents almost tripling from 455 per day in 2019/20 to 1,301 in 2020/21, according to research published by the British Retail Consortium (BRC).
This spike was concentrated in a significantly reduced number of stores and retail operations as much of the industry was closed throughout the year because of Covid-19 restrictions.
5…Tesco and WWF have announced the five startups that have won funding and the chance to test and scale their solutions in the former’s supply chain, with the aim of cutting the environmental impact of the average shopping basket and supporting a resilient and sustainable UK food system.
Innovation Connections is a new accelerator programme created by the aforementioned pair.
In the final on 6th May, a group of finalists pitched head to head in front of a panel of experts from Tesco and WWF, with five projects each awarded funding of up to £150,000.
1,254…Pitney Bowes has released new research highlighting the opportunity for British retailers with young US online shoppers.
Its survey of 1,254 US cross-border online shoppers finds one in four Generation Z consumers and more than one in five Millennials buy from UK online retailers once a month or more.
1…Prada has announced its first solo NFT drop. The brand is planning more drops, following its first foray into this space in collaboration with adidas Originals.
The solo drop is linked to the Prada Timecapsule, an online event in which a different exclusive item is made available in limited quantities, in selected markets, for only 24 hours each month.
Prada Crypted also launched this week, a new community server on Discord, which is open to everyone who wants to join.
10 million…Marriott International has inked a partnership agreement with Ant Group covering the Chinese market.
This will provide Alipay members with various benefits when they sign up for the Marriott Bonvoy Rewards Programme.
It builds on the more than 10 million newly enrolled members the company has gained through various channels since 2017, including its official flagship storefront in partnership with Fliggy, as well as consumer partnerships with Alibaba Group and Ant Group.
30%…As energy bills, fuel and food prices continue to climb, more UK consumers are turning to second hand shopping and upcycling in order to make ends meet, as well as minimise their environmental impact.
That’s according to new research from eBay Ads, which surveyed 1,000 people and found that 30% are having to make more considered purchases in order to get better value for money, and a fifth are buying more second hand items in order to save money.
$3.5 million…UK-based synthetic computer vision startup Neurolabs has announced a $3.5 million seed round led by LAUNCHub Ventures and with Lunar Ventures, Techstart and 7% Ventures as co-investors.
13.8k, 2.6 million, 360,000 and 13,000…The M&S Macclesfield store teams’s TikTok has hit 13.8k followers, with their latest video engaging 2.6 million people and receiving 360,000 likes plus 13,000 comments.
$8 million…AI body modelling technology startup, Bold Metrics, has announced $8 million in Series A financing.
75%…Victoria’s Secret has launched an online marketplace, available via VictoriasSecret.com and dubbed VS&Co-Lab, which “will showcase brands that align with its values of innovation and inclusivity.”
This features 19 brands, 75% of them founded, owned or led by women.
Victoria’s Secret recently acquired minority stakes in two of the featured companies, For Love & Lemons and Frankies Bikinis.
