Featuring Zippin, PMC, and Cust2Mate: RTIH runs through October’s coolest retail technology plays
RTIH Editor, Scott Thompson, brings you his stand out ‘future of retail’ systems deployments from October, including composable commerce platforms, TikTok live shopping experiences, a checkout-free stores first in Ireland, and a big smart carts deal in France.
PMC
PMC, a UK-based technology services provider for retail and B2C, has announced the launch of its composable commerce platform Graphene.
Graphene is pitched as a flexible, rapid and robust platform environment designed for commerce.
The platform is built on the fundamentals of a microservices, API led approach, cloud architecture, and a headless structure.
PMC says that the offering “allows retailers to generate business value with composite technology at scale and low cost…from lightning fast checkouts and enhanced customer loyalty using personalised campaigns, to optimised inventory operations and improved product availability in-store”.
Retailers can now customise applications to meet business needs and deploy cutting-edge solutions, which then readily scale as required, the company adds.
Amazon
Amazon has implemented a new artificial intelligence (AI)-based technology that, it claims, can spot even the smallest anomalies in delivery vans, from tyre deformities and undercarriage wear to bent or warped body pieces, before they become on-road problems.
The Automated Vehicle Inspection (AVI) tech is launching in partnership with startup UVeye in the US, Canada, Germany, and the UK.
“The last thing I want is for something preventable to happen, like a tyre blowing out because we missed an imperceptible defect during our morning inspection,” says Bennett Hart, owner of logistics company Hart Road. “This technology improves the safety of our fleet.”
Superdrug
UK health and beauty retailer Superdrug launched its first TikTok live shopping experience this month.
In a LinkedIn post, Paul Stafford, Head Of Digital Marketing, at Superdrug: “The jury is still out on whether this will take off in the west, like it has in China, but it’s an exciting way to engage with customers, and we're committed to exploring this channel further.”
“And while the scale may not be huge yet, live shopping is a great way to build brand love and stay relevant with our target consumers. And, it's fun!”
“Thanks to Ana Fisher (Assistant Marketing Manager at Superdrug) and Samantha Bullock (Social Media Marketing Manager at Superdrug) and the COTY team for their hard work on getting this up and running.”
Carrefour
A2Z Smart Technologies Corp. has been selected to supply Cust2Mate smart carts to Carrefour's Connected Cart project for its newly merged Hypermarket and Supermarket division in France.
Carrefour is the seventh largest global grocery retailer by revenue, operating 13,650 retail store locations worldwide under various banners including hypermarkets, supermarkets, convenience stores, cash and carry outlets and soft discount stores.
Its Hypermarket and Supermarket division in France has aggregate sales greater than €30 billion across approximately 1,300 stores that are equipped with approximately 600,000 carts.
Walmart
Perfect Corp. has announced a collaboration with Walmart to launch a makeup virtual try-on experience via the US retail giant’s iOS app.
This will allow Walmart customers to virtually try-on products across the blush, lip colour, eye shadow, and bronzer categories and discover their perfect shade.
“As a destination for beauty, we’re committed to identifying new and emerging opportunities to inspire our customers and create more personalised, seamless, customer centric shopping experiences. That’s why I’m so excited that Walmart is launching Beauty Virtual Try-On, to offer customers a more engaging and convenient try-on experience on the Walmart app,” says Creighton Kiper, Vice President of Beauty at Walmart U.S.
The offering features Perfect Corp.’s Face AI solution, which is powered by AI deep learning technology to create hyper-realistic AR powered makeup filters for customers to try-on digitally.
It will allow shoppers to virtually try-on more than 1,400 products from Walmart Beauty’s brand assortment including Almay, Black Radiance, CoverGirl, e.l.f. Cosmetics, Maybelline, NYX Professional Makeup, Revlon, Rimmel, Neutrogena, wet n wild, and The Lip Bar.
Good Housekeeping
Good Housekeeping this month teamed up with online livestream home shopping platform, TalkShopLive, to introduce its first ever GH Live Shopping Week, where people could score exclusive deals on gift worthy products from celebs and influencers.
Dublin Airport
A new Dublin Town To Go store, powered by Zippin technology, has opened in T1 Arrivals at Dublin Airport.
People scan their payment card to enter and a combination of cameras and weight sensored shelving then detects what they’re buying and charges their card when they walk out.
The store, the first of its kind to open to the general public in Ireland, sells a range of goods to meet the needs of both departing and arriving passengers and also those waiting to welcome people in Arrivals, including coffee, pastries, sandwiches, salads, sweets, cereal, milk and toiletries.
Paradies Lagardère
Paradies Lagardère has deployed ARHT’s Capsule Hologram technology at The Goods Express@CLT store, situated in Charlotte Douglas International Airport, to provide shoppers with a virtual interactive associate.
The store also features Amazon's Just Walk Out technology.
In a LInkedIn post, Paradies Lagardère said: “Get ready for an interactive shopping experience like never before, where holographic displays meet seamless shopping. Introducing ARHT’s cutting-edge Capsule Hologram technology at The Goods Express@CLT store, featuring Amazon's Just Walk Out technology.”
“We are thrilled to be partnering with ARHT, Amazon, and CLT to take travel retail to a whole new dimension. Make sure to check it out post-security in the Main Terminal.”
Kingfisher
This month at Google Cloud Next, Kingfisher shared the work it has been doing with AI and machine learning technologies.
Group Head of Data Science, Mohsen Ghasempour, discussed how the retailer is harnessing these innovations to improve the customer experience and power growth.
He introduced Athena, an AI orchestration framework which will manage how Kingfisher prompts and interacts with AI language models, as well as other AI tools developed in-house.
This is designed with advanced controls to ensure security and provide protection against sensitive or inappropriate content.
Tom Betts, Group Data Director at Kingfisher, says: “Athena will help us test and learn with these technologies even faster.”
Żabka Polska
Żabka Polska has launched its first ever store that is open 24/7 and offers both a traditional and autonomous shopping option.
In a LinkedIn post, Patryk Powierża, Head of Nano Growth at Żabka Polska, said: “Today we opened the first hybrid Żabka store powered by autonomous technology (supplied by AiFi). How does it work?”
“From 6am-11pm, the store operates like a traditional store with a cashier. From 11pm-6am, it is switched to an unmanned format, which enables autonomous shopping.”
He added: “Thanks to that we can extend opening hours, be available 24/7, and deliver a great retail experience to Polish customers.”
“This opening is related to a great milestone that our company has achieved. Last Friday, we opened store 10,000 in the Żabka Polska network. Our hybrid store has a beautiful 10,002 number. The future is here.”
Therabody
Wellness brand Therabody has created an interactive window experience as part of Harrods Tech Month.
The concept was designed, produced and installed by Outform. The result is an experience that passers-by can control from their phone to discover more about Therabody’s wellness universe and product range.
Its display takes up an entire window along Harrods’ Brompton Road frontage. A QR controlled interactive screen sits at its centre and a use of LED lighting ensures that it delivers a night time impact.
It showcases four hero Therabody products, including the brand’s newest entrant into the beauty tech space, its TheraFace Mask, an at home LED therapy mask that couples red and blue light with vibration therapy.
Shoppers can choose one of three “stories”, in line with Therabody’s three product categories which trigger corresponding content on the large LED screen.
As they watch the content, the relevant product categories light up in the window display - red for beauty, white for wellness, blue for performance - accompanied by a mobile landing page which links to the Harrods online store and a call to action to visit the brand concession on Harrods’ fifth floor and trial the product range.
HyperFinity
Decision intelligence specialist, HyperFinity, has launched a new retail media product, designed to help retailers leverage their first-party data, and maximise the impact of advertising.
The UK-based company’s platform links together customer spend data, product attributes, and web browsing data to deliver precise insight into consumer behaviour and needs. These insights are used to target consumers with highly relevant products on retailers’ websites, apps and in-store.
American Girl
American Girl has unveiled its 2024 Girl of the Year, Lila Monetti.
As part of the launch, the brand will reveal Lila’s own room in its virtual museum experience this October through a partnership with immersive e-commerce platform Obsess. This will let people explore more of Lila’s life and personality, including her love of horseback riding and gymnastics.
“We know our fans will flip for our newest Girl of the Year, Lila Monetti, who arrives just in time for the holidays,” says Jamie Cygielman, General Manager at American Girl.
“As with all our beloved characters, Lila will inspire kids to face new challenges with purpose and positivity and find the joy and strength that comes from unexpected friendships.”
JUXTA
JUXTA, a technology and micro convenience company that launched in August, reports rapid take up with businesses in the EV value chain and multiple retail partners ready to adopt its offering across the USA.
The first customers to experience its inaugural product, Nomad, were Renewal 2023 festival goers in Buena Vista, Colorado, last month. The Nomad’s ability to travel and cater to high demand yet remote locations was on display as it served thousands of revellers 24-hours a day during the event.
Renewal 2023 launched a new partnership for JUXTA with Choice Market, a retailer headquartered in Denver, Colorado with outlets across the state. The first Choice Market Nomad micro-store will open in Denver, making it Colorado’s first portable, autonomous, convenience outlet.
A further retail partnership has been formed with Golden Pantry Food Stores, a group headquartered in Watkinsville, Georgia. Golden Pantry’s first Nomad store will open in Wire Park, Watkinsville, GA.
This mixed use development, which is an amalgamation of apartments, offices, restaurants, micro-brewery, and a multi-faceted events space, has been crafted from a repurposed factory.
The integration of JUXTA’s autonomous store aims to cater to the diverse footfall ranging from local residents to a plethora of daily visitors, 24-hours a day and without the need to staff the store.
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