Bringing in 2023 with a top ten list: Last week’s most clicked RTIH retail technology articles
These are the RTIH articles that caught your fancy last week, including Yoti, Zapp, American Girl, Obsess, Advanced Commerce, Amazon’s Tony Hoggett, and our 2022 retail technology innovation awards.
2022 RTIH Innovation Awards winners and highly commended entries announced
Sook, Walmart, Ribble Cycles, Obsess, Jisp, B&Q, Cart.com, Compass Group, AiFi, Pets at Home, and TPP Retail were among the companies who emerged victorious at RTIH’s 2022 retail technology awards.
Now into their fourth year, the awards celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.
We received a record number of submissions this year across 14 categories (you can find a full rundown of the 2022 shortlists here).
Our winners and highly commended companies were announced during a sold out event that took place in central London during December and was attended by retailers, tech suppliers, members of our judging panel, and sponsors.
So, without further ado, here is the 2022 RTIH Innovation Awards hall of fame.
Congratulations to our latest entrants!
Yoti digital age verification technology trialled at UK grocery retailers' stores
The UK Home Office reports that trials of digital age verification at supermarket self-checkouts have now ended.
Yoti, whose technology was tested out by the likes of Morrisons, Tesco, Co-op, and Asda, has shared its initial key takeaways from the initiative.
During the trials, shoppers in participating stores could try two new ways to prove their age.
Facial age estimation technology: those purchasing alcohol looked at a camera on the self-checkout and technology estimated their age.
It didn’t require any personal details or ID documents, and all images were instantly deleted once someone received their estimated age. If the system detected they looked younger than the set age threshold, customers were asked to use an alternative method.
Digital ID app: shoppers could use the free Yoti or Post Office EasyID app to scan a QR code on the checkout screen and share a verified age attribute.
Those who did not wish to use digital age verification had the option to ask a staff member to come and approve them and if required show their ID to a colleague instead.
Drones, awards, and e-commerce evolution: RTIH’s biggest retail technology articles on LinkedIn
We’re big fans of LinkedIn and are busy building an amazing community of retail tech enthusiasts on the social media platform.
That was the retail technology year that was. Micro-fulfilment centres grow in popularity
Some of the most noteworthy retail technology innovation during 2022 came via the micro-fulfilment centre (MFC) space.
2022 was the year many companies installed MFCs. including H-E-B which deployed an AutoStore MFC inside its flagship store located in Plano, TX, USA.
2023, meanwhile, will be the year several fulfilment companies breakout of the pack, according to Brittain Ladd, a former supply chain consultant and Amazon executive.
Influencers, awards, and hoverboards: RTIH’s most read retail technology articles in 2022
Check out the top ten RTIH retail systems articles that caught your fancy during 2022, including Aldi UK, AiFi, Thought, Shopify, Clekt, Currys, Bolt, Amazon, and Nike.
Frictionless stores and drone deliveries: 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 Walmart, Rakuten France, Amazon, JYSK, MAPCO, REWE, New Look, and Best Buy.
UK e-commerce startup Advanced Commerce bags funding for merchandising platform
Wealth Club has led a £1.5 million investment round, raising £1.3 million under the UK Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) for Advanced Commerce, a visual merchandising platform for online retailers such as LK Bennett and The Conran Shop.
Advanced Commerce is the brainchild of André Brown who previously founded Attraqt - a merchandising platform used by over 300 enterprise retail clients, from Asos to The White Company and Screwfix - and subsequently helped it float on AIM in 2014.
This is the second fundraise by Wealth Club, after raising £1.3 million in late 2021, co-investing alongside institutional investor, Haatch Ventures.
American Girl teams with Obsess for Kavi Sharma virtual museum launch
Mattel brand American Girl has unveiled its 2023 Girl of the Year, Kavi Sharma, and as part of the launch has partnered with Obsess to create a free virtual museum experience.
This allows fans to tour Kavi’s room and learn more about her Indian culture and love of performing, play games and learn more about each American Girl character.
The Kavi product collection is available online from 29th December and at all American Girl retail locations Stateside and, starting 1st January, at the brans’s specialty boutiques at select Indigo and Chapters locations in Canada and online at Indigo.ca.
A hardcover book, It’s Showtime, Kavi, will be available at American Girl and other retail and online booksellers later in 2023.
Amazon’s Tony Hoggett discusses 2022 in-store and rapid delivery innovations
As he approaches completion of his first year working on Amazon’s physical stores, grocery, and specialty fulfilment businesses, Tony Hoggett has taken to LinkedIn to reflect on the e-commerce giant’s accomplishments in this space.
Hoggett departed Tesco to join Amazon in January of this year, leading the teams responsible for Amazon Fresh, Amazon Go, Amazon Style, Whole Foods Market, and the firm’s ultrafast delivery services.
In a LInkedIn post, he said: “One of the things that excited me most about joining Amazon is the company’s customer obsessed mindset. When you start with the customer and work backward, every decision, every new idea, every invention has a purpose – to make the customer experience better.”
Quick commerce firm Zapp launches emergency 24/7 Christmas turkey delivery service
Last month, Zapp launched what was pitched as London's first 24/7 emergency Christmas turkey delivery service.
The company stocked whole turkeys (£149.99) from organic farm producer Daylesford, available to order up to, and including, 25th December.
Customers could also purchase the likes of gravy, pigs in blankets, brussel sprouts, parsnips, and Yorkshire puddings.
Zapp also stocked Christmas food essentials to see people through the whole day, from smoked salmon and cream cheese bagels to chocolates.
The service built on Zapp's last minute Christmas gift store, launched earlier this month.
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