Featuring TrueLayer, Deposco, and Simbe Robotics: RTIH’s biggest retail technology articles on LinkedIn right now
We’re big fans of LinkedIn and are busy building an amazing community of retail tech enthusiasts on the social media platform. These are the articles that are currently on their radars, including Ocado Retail, Polytag, Bower, Perfect Corp., Dufry, Footgear, Nextail, Zippin, and Huq Industries.
TrueLayer research: merchants lose out from poor payments experiences as frustrated shoppers abandon carts
Open banking specialist, TrueLayer, has published research revealing the gap between consumers’ expectations and the reality of payments experiences, and how this is affecting merchants.
Ocado Retail enlists Polytag and Bower for UK-based package recycling reward initiative
The retailer has teamed up with Polytag and Bower to deliver the initiative.
Customers can scan a QR code printed onto Ocado’s own brand two and four pint milk bottles, which have just reduced in price to £1.45 and £1.20 respectively.
The first 20,000 codes scanned will see consumers receive a 20p reward which will appear in their digital wallet in the Bower app – the same amount that will be redeemed as a deposit in the upcoming Deposit Return Scheme legislation once it is rolled out in 2025. This 20p can then be withdrawn to their bank account.
Although consumers will not redeem a deposit – as it will not be added at the point of purchase – the partnership aims to demonstrate the viability of a DDRS by enabling people to receive a cash incentive for recycling using their smartphones.
Perfect Corp. partners with Dufry to bring AR makeup virtual try-on experience to European airports
Perfect Corp. has announced a collaboration with travel retailer, Dufry, providing in-store and web makeup virtual try-on for products from 15 brands.
In London Heathrow, London Stansted, Manchester and Barcelona, it is now possible to try products from the likes of Benefit, Kylie Cosmetics, Guerlain, and Huda Beauty.
Dufry plans to bring Perfect Corp. powered virtual try-on shopping experiences to more airports in the future.
LK Bennett taps True Fit technology to bring artificial intelligence to its digital fit experience
British fashion brand, LK Bennett, has teamed with TrueFit, a platform that decodes size and fit for digital consumers, as it looks to increase conversion, reduce returns, and drive customer loyalty.
It will leverage True Fit’s Fashion Genome solution where recommendations are powered by the demographics, fit preferences, and transactional behaviour of millions of global shoppers and enhanced by AI and continuous machine learning.
Footgear taps Nextail smart retail merchandising platform in stores across South Africa
South African multi-brand footwear retailer, Footgear, has partnered with smart retail merchandising platform Nextail.
As a first step, Footgear will implement in-season solutions across its footprint of more than 200 stores nationwide.
Over its 22-year history, it has relied on spreadsheet-based tools for planning and forecasting in-season inventory management. However, with a growth strategy in place, these methods have proved challenging to scale.
Consequently, it recognised the importance of a centralised information source, better system integration, streamlined manual processes, and improved inventory visibility across its retail network.
Simbe Robotics raises $28 million Series B to accelerate global expansion and product innovation
Simbe, which leverages AI and robotics to provide retailers with real-time insights into inventory and operations, has announced a Series B equity financing round of $28 million, led by Eclipse.
“We're honoured to be supported by an investor like Eclipse, with a team that recognises technology's incredible potential to significantly enhance retail operations, as well as greatly improve the customer experience,” says Brad Bogolea, CEO and Co-founder, Simbe.
“Elevating the retail experience for everyone — retailers, their associates, and customers — through AI and robotics is the foundation of Simbe’s mission, and this funding will enable us to share this vision and reimagined experience with more retail partners around the world.”
UK retailer Easy Bathrooms deploys Deposco omnichannel planning and fulfilment solution
Deposco has signed Easy Bathrooms as a new customer.
UK-based Easy Bathrooms has 135 stores in action and a further 65 set to open soon, and has opted for Deposco’s end-to-end omnichannel planning and fulfilment solution.
It says that this will help it manage its 350,000 square foot warehouse more efficiently, provide an accurate, real-time view of inventory to quickly satisfy customer orders, and remove a raft of manual processes across the business.
“We chose to work with Deposco because they understand our business and demonstrated the knowledge to support our growth objectives,” says Craig Waddington, Founder and CEO at Easy Bathrooms.
”The Deposco solution will give us the control, visibility and accuracy we need to continue to deliver a great customer experience, through enabling our warehouse to operate more efficiently. This will free us to focus on growing the Easy Bathrooms retail footprint.”
Sweaty Betty deploys NewStore mobile first omnichannel platform in UK and Ireland stores
Sweaty Betty has rolled out NewStore’s mPOS solution in 73 stores across the UK and Ireland.
By replacing its legacy PoS with this tech, the London-based brand now runs its retail operations entirely on iPhone, laying the groundwork for its omnichannel transformation.
"Sweaty Betty has quickly grown from a small London boutique to an international business. During this process, we recognised the importance of providing a seamless and scalable omnichannel experience for our customers and store colleagues," says Simon Pakenham-Walsh, Chief Technology Officer, Sweaty Betty.
"We selected NewStore because its platform does not carry the complex technical debt of the industry’s legacy solutions, and the company's vision aligns perfectly with our strategy, which includes having an extensible, modern, and API first technology stack."
Taylor Swift fans get checkout free technology experience at Zippin powered Empower Field stores
Thanks, then, to checkout-free stores firm Zippin, who posted the following tweet, ahead of a sold out Swift concert (part of her The Eras Tour) at Empower Field in Denver.
XY Retail appoints Alberto Riva as Chief Revenue Officer and Daniele Nizzero as Director of Solution Strategy, EMEA
XY Retail, a provider of omnichannel retail solutions, has announced the additions of Alberto Riva as Chief Revenue Officer and Daniele Nizzero as Director of Solution Strategy, EMEA.
Riva will be responsible for overseeing sales and strategic partnership efforts, helping to drive the company’s worldwide growth and adoption.
He founded Fortech in 1993 and, after selling it to Micros, assumed the role of Managing Director for the Micros Retail Business in EMEA, later joining Oracle to play a key role in the global growth of Xstore.
In 2018, he led Aptos Retail's market expansion in Europe and oversaw the TXT acquisition in Milan.
Nizzero joined Micros in 2008 and played a key role in the sales and implementation of Xstore across Europe.
After Oracle's acquisition of Micros, he gained experience in large corporate operations and a transition to Aptos allowed him to explore new technologies.
At XY Retail, he will lead and manage the solution strategy and consulting team in the EMEA region, developing and reinforcing relationships with customers and partners.
Huq Industries raises £4 million from UK investors as it eyes expansion across Europe
Huq Industries, a UK-based company that provides data on footfall and visitor frequency to local councils, retail businesses and real estate developers, has secured £4 million in equity funding led by 24 Haymarket and alongside ACF Investors.
Conrad Poulson, CEO at Huq Industries, says: “We are delighted to have garnered such strong support from like minded individuals in the UK investor community as we expand our operations to meet the growing demand for actionable insights on real world behaviours.”
“This funding will enable us to build on the world class team that we have put together here at Huq in order that we can capitalise on the immense demand that we are experiencing for our products across EMEA.”
Including Coalescent Mobile Robotics and Distil.ai: Six retail technology funding rounds you need to know about
RTIH rounds up six retail systems ventures who have recently secured significant investments in their businesses, including Simbe Robotics, RideTandem, and Verity.
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