“Have space for failure”: Check out last week’s most read RTIH retail technology articles
These are the RTIH articles that caught your fancy last week, including retail technology influencers, immersive pop-up roadshows, self-driving trucks, and Open Banking-based payments.
Drum roll, please. RTIH publishes its 2023 Top 100 Retail Technology Influencers List
The latest edition of the RTIH Top 100 Retail Technology Influencers List has arrived!
Here are the people who made a splash in 2022 and are set for a barnstorming 2023.
RTIH has scoured the retail technology world to find the most influential figures for this comprehensive list of people and trends that shape the industry and help drive it forward.
We’re living in unprecedented times.
The Covid-19 outbreak has driven a seismic change in shopping habits, with checkout free stores, automation in the supply chain, rapid delivery services, and the metaverse making waves.
Such disruption requires new ways of problem solving and thought leaders who can both evangelise and execute on the likes of digital transformation and omnichannel success.
Which is where the RTIH Top 100 Retail Technology Influencers List comes in, presented, we should stress, in no particular order.
We hope you enjoy reading through it and, as always, if you would like to give feedback or believe that there are some glaring omissions, please feel free to get in touch here.
Download the list in pdf format here.
Or read via Issuu.
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Samsung UK plugs new Galaxy S23 phone series with immersive pop-up roadshow
Samsung has launched an interactive and immersive pop-up roadshow in the UK, starting in Oxford, to highlight the ‘nightography’ camera and gaming capabilities of its new Galaxy S23 series.
The concept was created, designed and built by Outform.
Visitors were able to check-in to the experience by scanning a QR code through Outform’s PodDrop product, which entered them into a competition to win a new Galaxy S23.
The space then included a selfie booth with colour changing LEDs so that visitors could see the camera’s consistent quality in different light settings.
Photos could then be shared digitally whilst they received an instant print to take away, both of which were watermarked with the Galaxy S23 series name and Samsung branding.
Guests were also able to use the Galaxy S23 as a controller so that they could play the various games available on the device through Samsung’s 55” Odyssey Ark Gaming Monitor, giving them the opportunity to play on a bigger screen, entirely powered by the Galaxy S23 device.
In addition, visitors could explore Samsung Galaxy’s ecosystem of products through real-life demos supported by interactive screens to tell the brand story.
The pop-up then travelled to six other high streets and universities across Brierley Hill, Nottingham, Manchester, Cardiff, Southampton and Reading.
“LA is just the beginning”: AI powered logistics startup Gently completes first delivery
Gently, a Los Angeles-based AI powered logistics firm, has marked its official launch by delivering its first item in West Los Angeles.
Co-founded by former Harvard Business School classmates Anas Aljumaily and Elian Pres-Gurwits, Gently is seeking to create a fully decentralised supply chain in America by 2040.
The firm is a last mile delivery provider that partners with retailers and leverages artificial intelligence and predictive data to store goods closer to the customer.
Clix Technology launches mobile first Clix Smart Locker following trial at B&Q Cardiff store
Clix Technology, a UK-based startup combining mobile technology with customisable smart locker design for the retail sector, is launching a new product - the Clix Smart Locker - having trialled it in B&Q Cardiff since July 2022.
Retail Technology Show report - Paul Wilkinson talks innovation learnings from stints at Amazon, Tesco Labs, Deliveroo
Retail Technology Show 2023 kicked off on Wednesday, with one of the first conference sessions consisting of a fireside chat with Paul Wilkinson, Group Product Manager - Grocery Partners, Deliveroo, entitled What I’ve Learnt About Retail Innovation From Working At Amazon, Tesco Labs And Deliveroo.
Responding to the question, what advice would you give retailers looking to achieve an innovation mindset?, Wilkinson responded: “Carve out plenty of time for your team to work on it. Give them space to do innovation.”
He added: “They also have to stay close to the business. Tesco Labs was in the retailer’s main campus. Don’t set up a trendy office in, say, Shoreditch.”
Retailers should also prioritise ruthlessly. “You might do ten things a year, but if one of those succeeds then you have won,” Wilkinson commented.
“Have space for failure,” he continued. “And pick what will have the biggest impact for customers. Will it also save the business money or make it money?”
Companies should think in the longest possible timeframe.
Tesco, for instance, has been working with Israeli startup Trigo on a series of autonomous stores. “Trigo is a long game thing as, when I was at Tesco, we knew that it would have a huge impact.”
If you don’t do that, then you will be constantly fighting fires, Wilkinson warned.
Eagle Eye snags five-year deal with John Lewis Partnership for new loyalty initiative
Eagle Eye has secured a five-year contract with The John Lewis Partnership for its new pan-partnership loyalty project launching in 2024 alongside dunnhumby.
This brings together Eagle Eye’s existing relationships with John Lewis, as first announced in 2017 to improve the retailer’s digital marketing capabilities, and with Waitrose, as subsequently announced in 2019.
The project aims to integrate the group’s high street business, online and app touchpoints, building on the My John Lewis and My Waitrose loyalty programmes.
The Eagle Eye AIR platform will provide The John Lewis Partnership with loyalty management capabilities, enabling dunnhumby’s data science to be executed at scale to deliver more personalised rewards, offers and experiences to customers.
Currys selects LTIMindtree as partner for second phase of omnichannel transformation journey
LTIMindtree has been selected as a key digital transformation partner by UK retailer Currys.
During the five-year engagement, Currys will leverage LTIMindtree’s retail business consulting and technology capabilities to deliver the next phase of its omnichannel transformation initiative.
The pair have been working together since 2022.
“We are delighted to select LTIMindtree as our key digital partner for the second phase of our transformation journey. Consolidating our consumer technology and transformation initiatives with a trusted partner was an easy decision, given their technical excellence and deep industry knowledge,” says Arron D’Aubney, Chief Technology Officer, Currys.
“Our previous engagement with LTIMindtree has been critical in our evolution as a ‘digital first’ omnichannel retailer. Today, omnichannel remains the preferred mode for consumers as Currys builds on its strengths.”
“Through this renewed partnership, we are confident of streamlining our ever growing employee engagement, enhancing consumer satisfaction, and achieving sustainable business growth to match its mission of making technology accessible to all.”
Featuring Mattel, Quorn, and OnBuy: last week’s biggest retail technology plays at a glance
RTIH rounds up the stand out retail systems deals, launches, deployments and pilots from the past seven days. Including Halfords, Asda, UNINTERRUPTED, ShipStation, Wayve, and Clevon.
Kodiak Robotics and C.R. England launch autonomous deliveries of Tyson Foods protein products
Self-driving truck company, Kodiak Robotics, has announced a partnership with truckload carrier C.R. England.
To kick things off, the pair have launched a pilot to autonomously ship Tyson Foods protein products between Dallas and San Antonio, Texas.
The deliveries will launch in April using Kodiak self-driving trucks and C.R. England refrigerated trailers. Safety drivers will be in the trucks in the initial stages of the pilot.
Holland & Barrett taps Trustly’s Open Banking-based payments for UK online store
This allows consumers to pay directly from their bank account in the checkout.
Holland & Barrett is one of the largest UK retailers to embrace this type of account-to-account payment technology and is Trustly’s first major e-commerce partnership on these shores since its acquisition of UK-based Open Banking platform provider Ecospend.
By implementing the technology, Holland & Barrett says it will solve several payment challenges including refunds, reconciliation, and rising costs relating to payments.
It integrated Trustly’s services into its current infrastructure thanks to the latter’s long-term relationship with Adyen.
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