Controversial checkout free stores: check out August’s most clicked RTIH retail technology articles
These are the RTIH retail systems articles that caught your fancy during August, including Aldi UK, Marks and Spencer, Amazon, Temu, Vinted, and Downtown Spirits.
Aldi UK checkout-free store at centre of cash row as Piers Corbyn pays for strawberries with coins
In early 2022, discount retailer Aldi UK launched its first autonomous store.
Situated on Greenwich High Street in London, it enables customers to complete their shop without scanning a single product, or having to go through a checkout.
They can download the Aldi Shop&Go app, which will allow them to enter the store, pick up their items, and then walk out when they have completed their shop.
Once a customer leaves, they will then be automatically charged via their selected payment method and a receipt will appear in the app.
The system, provided by AiFi, uses specially positioned cameras.
Those people wishing to buy alcohol, or other Challenge 25 products, are able to use facial age estimation technology, provided by Yoti, to authorise their purchase.
Giles Hurley, CEO at Aldi UK and Ireland, said at the time of the opening: “Today is the culmination of months of work, not least from the team here in Greenwich and I’m looking forward to seeing how customers react to our trial.”
“This store utilises the very latest in retail technology offering Aldi’s award winning products and unbeatable prices to customers in a new and innovative way. The team are really excited about seeing customers come in and experience Aldi Shop&Go.”
Fast forward to the present day and the store has been targeted by Piers Corbyn, brother of former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, and also a climate change denier, anti-vaccine activist, and conspiracy theorist.
In a video posted on social media, Corbyn can be seen holding a box of strawberries and putting down cash on a help table.
Goodays sponsors Customer Experience Excellence category at 2023 RTIH Innovation Awards
The fifth edition of the RTIH Innovation Awards is now open for entries.
The awards celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world and include a Customer Experience Excellence category.
Deadline for 2023 submissions is Friday, 27th October, with winners being revealed at an exclusive event at the Barbican in central London on Wednesday, 29th November.
The aforementioned category is new for 2023 and sponsored by Goodays.
The Covid-19 outbreak has reshaped customer behaviour and their expectations of retailers.
This award will go to an online and/or physical retailer that has understood and reacted in a positive fashion to these customer trends and patterns, by providing exceptional omnichannel customer experiences, powered by innovative technologies.
Download an entry form here.
Click here for further information on the 2023 RTIH Innovation Awards.
Ride share company Lyft deploys Rokt technology to increase customer loyalty and engagement
Rokt has partnered with Lyft to boost the experience offered to customers in the US and Canada.
The ride sharing company is tapping Rokt's technology to present relevant offers to people through the Lyft app.
"We both share a customer first approach and an unwavering commitment to adding value to the digital experience," says Elizabeth Buchanan, CCO at Rokt.
"We're thrilled to launch this partnership to make every Lyft journey more personally relevant for riders in North America and to support the Lyft Media division as it grows."
Marks and Spencer Chief Digital and Technology Officer Jeremy Pee set to exit
Jeremy Pee is set to depart M&S just months after assuming an expanded position with the UK retailer.
Pee was hired in 2018 from Canadian supermarket chain Loblaw.
He took on the role of Chief Digital and Technology Officer earlier this year. He was previously Chief Digital and Data Officer, and held that position for just over four years.
“After five years at M&S, Jeremy is moving his family back to Canada in a planned move,” a spokesman for the retailer told The Times.
His responsibilities will be taken on by Co-Chief Executive officer Katie Bickerstaffe until a replacement is found.
Consumption nation: Here’s what American retailers can learn from booming Chinese shopping app Temu
US retailers beware. Riding high with Temu, the Chinese are coming and they’re coming to win.
That’s the view of Brittain Ladd, a supply chain consultant and former Amazon executive.
Downtown Spirits becomes first beer, wine, and spirits retailer to implement Amazon Just Walk Out technology
Downtown Spirits, a Seattle-based beer, wine and spirits retailer, has opened the doors to its new, 4,200 square-foot location on 7th Avenue between Olive and Stewart, across from Pacific Place, featuring a fully checkout-free shopping experience powered by Amazon Just Walk Out technology.
Downtown Spirits is the first ever beer, wine, and spirits retailer to implement Just Walk Out technology made possible by artificial intelligence like computer vision and deep learning techniques, including generative AI, to accurately determine who took what in any retail environment.
Guests enter the store by using the Downtown Spirits app at the front door.
The technology detects what shoppers take from or return to the shelves, and creates a virtual shopping session.
When people have completed their shopping experience, they are able to leave the store without having to wait in line, and their choice of payment method will be charged for the items they took with them.
InPost expands Vinted partnership with launch of over the counter parcel collection service
InPost has announced an expansion of its Vinted partnership, with the launch of InPost Shop, a new parcel pick-up service in the UK.
The C2C online second-hand fashion marketplace led an initial trial earlier this year.
The service gives its members the option to collect parcels from participating stores, providing an additional OOH collection option alongside InPost's 5,000 strong locker network.
Odore bags $5 million in seed funding for expansion and Innovation in customer engagement space
Odore, a UK-based customer engagement platform enabling direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands to streamline their marketing efforts, has announced a $5 million seed round led by Fuel Ventures with participation from existing investors.
The startup counts the entire L’Oreal Group (including the likes of Armani, Lancome, and YSL), Dior, LVMH, and Shiseido among its clients.
It was launched in 2020 by co-founders Armaan Mehta and Karan Gupta, both graduates of London School of Economics.
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