Including Aldi UK, Netto, and XY Retail: RTIH’s biggest retail technology articles on LinkedIn this week
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 new payment experiences, rapidly evolving omnichannel landscapes, Europe’s largest autonomous supermarket, and an inflection point in consumers’ shopping behaviour.
Aldi UK launches new payment experience at retailer’s flagship Shop&Go store in Greenwich, London
Aldi has added a contactless card payment option to its AiFi technology powered checkout-free Shop&Go store in Greenwich, London.
As a result, customers no longer need to download Aldi’s Shop&Go app to access the store, which opened in January 2022.
In a LinkedIn post, Kalle Kroll, Manager Strategy & Innovation at Aldi South Group, said: “Two years after opening the first checkout-free Aldi store, I am proud to say that the joint project team in Mülheim, London, and Atherstone, has realised the next iteration of Aldi Shop&Go. This is an incredible project, and every day I appreciate being part of it.”
He added: “Customers are at the focus of what we do at Aldi IT Innovation. Now by introducing an additional customer journey, we are addressing a key customer need."
“We are enabling customers to enter the checkout-free store even quicker, and without needing to download an app: Just hold your card or Apple/Google Pay against the reader, do your shop and go.’
Auctane hires Matt Schurk as Chief Sales Officer and Sara Feulner as Chief Human Resources Officer
Auctane, a delivery experience company that operates brands such as ShipStation, Metapack, and ShipEngine, has named Matt Schurk as Chief Sales Officer and Sara Feulner as Chief Human Resources Officer.
Schurk has previously worked at organisations such as Top Hat and Bazaarvoice.
Feulner’s CV includes stints at the likes of ARM and Bumble.
Armani Group taps XY Retail unified commerce platform as it adapts to rapidly evolving omnichannel landscape
XY Retail has been chosen as the unified commerce platform for the Armani Group in a deal covering operations for the brands Giorgio Armani, Emporio Armani, Armani Exchange, and Armani Casa across over 20 countries and more than 700 stores.
This encompasses a suite of solutions, including Point of Sale (PoS), and Order Management System (OMS).
The aim here is to smoothly integrate the front office and back office, creating a unified commerce experience for both customers and retailer teams across the online and offline business channels.
Victoria's Secret & Co. gets personal as it taps Google Cloud AI and generative AI technologies
Victoria's Secret & Co. (VS&Co) and Google Cloud have announced a multi-year partnership.
The former will leverage Google Cloud's AI and generative AI technologies to create more personalised and inclusive online shopping experiences for its customers.
Shopify and Manhattan Associates build unified commerce solution with Nautica onboard as first customer
Manhattan Associates and Shopify have announced a new partnership that aims to help retailers build unified omnichannel shopping experiences.
This will see Shopify’s commerce platform combined with Manhattan’s omnichannel order management solution.
“Manhattan’s focus on fast, easy, reliable and transparent shopping enables our enterprise retail customers to lower sales friction and elevate purchase confidence, which is why we’re proud to align ourselves with with Shopify in our mutual endeavour to improve the digital commerce experience,” says Brian Kinsella, Senior Vice President of Product Management at Manhattan.
“We’re excited about the elevated experience for consumers, and the increased revenue and margin potential for our merchants owing to the combined offering.”
NewStore launches report at NRF 2024 examining omnichannel competence of 696 retailers
NewStore, a mobile first unified commerce platform for retail brands, in partnership with commercetools and ChangeCX, has announced the results of its 2024 Omnichannel Leadership Report.
In its 10th edition, the initiative assessed the capabilities of 696 retail brands across 10 countries.
NewStore looked at each retailer’s performance across three key experience categories: online, mobile, and in-store.
The results determined the overall score percentages and score percentages for each report category.
Through this process, NewStore identified the following brands as the 2024 Omnichannel Leaders: Scheels (US), Nordstrom (US), Massimo Dutti (ES), Golf Galaxy (US), and Foot Locker (US).
Netto announces landmark Trigo powered autonomous supermarket with real-time receipts baked in
German discount chain Netto has opened what is pitched as Europe’s largest autonomous supermarket in Regensburg.
The 800 sqm location enables customers to shop without registering, checking in or self-scanning.
An intelligent camera system records every movement and assigns products taken from the shelf to each shopping basket. This is done without collecting any personal or biometric data.
Fruit and vegetables are automatically weighed and added to baskets as soon as they are taken off the shelf. Once finished, customers can make their way to one of two fast exit terminals.
The store uses technology from Trigo, the company behind Aldi’s autonomous stores in Utrecht and Rewe’s pilot in Munich. In addition to the fast exit terminals, the shop also has regular service and self-service checkouts.
It features the latest extension of Trigo’s EasyOut system, with the company adding the capability for shoppers to review their receipts, approve and pay, before they leave the store.
The new EasyOut Station generates shoppers’ receipts in real-time while utilising the fast exit terminals.
Payment is made by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or the Netto app. Using the app also enables shoppers to automatically redeem coupons and archive the paperless receipt within the app.
UK retail technology startup Saledock secures £150,000 pre-seed round for unified commerce platform
Solid Bond reports an undisclosed investment into Saledock’s £150,000 pre-seed round.
This will enable the Yorkshire-based startup to grow its team and continue to serve SME clients with a retail solution built with them in mind.
The company has developed a unified e-commerce platform, inventory management, and in-store EPoS system.
Built from the ground up, Saledock started with a chance conversation at a local menswear store.
Shopping for suits ahead of their wedding, software developers Layla and Lee Gladwin found themselves chatting with the owner about the difficulties the store was experiencing with their patched together retail systems.
A look at the retail software market soon told them that the menswear store certainly wasn’t alone in their struggle.
Multiple clunky integrated systems across EPoS, e-commerce and inventory management coupled with poor customer support from existing providers were all contributing to an inadequate customer experience for many retailers.
Spotting a gap in the market and after consulting with other retailers, they decided to build an alternative.
Word of mouth, a little telemarketing, some PPC and exhibiting at local business events saw Saledock build a 30-strong client base.
It then decided to raise a pre-seed round and was introduced to Solid Bond by another later stage VC fund.
Moss Bros deploys Order Management System from 2023 RTIH Innovation Awards winner OneStock
Moss (aka Moss Bros) has selected OneStock’s Order Management System to continue its digital transformation push as it looks to create a world class shopping experience for its customers.
Romulus Grigoras, Co-founder and CEO at OneStock, says: “Great achievement and a big thank you to the teams at Moss Bros, Xiatech and OneStock working hand in hand to deliver a great project and above all, amazing business results.”
Avery Dennison research shows consumers’ growing preference for frictionless shopping experiences
New research commissioned by Avery Dennison reveals an inflection point in consumers’ shopping behaviour.
37% of shoppers polled across the USA and the UK say they would switch to a retailer that offers full check-out free stores.
Two-thirds would opt for retailers that offer self-scanning at the end of a shop, while 59% say the same about self-scanning as they shop. 45% would switch to a self-checkout service where products are automatically detected via in-item tagging, meaning they don't need to scan a barcode.
Generation Z is leading the way when it comes to a preference for frictionless shopping, with 52% likely to switch retailers for check-out free stores.
Furthermore, 49% would be likely to spend more money with a retailer that has a connected or automated checkout experience, and 52% say connected stores would make them more loyal to a retail brand.
Including Pinterest and Tahina: RTIH runs through last week's coolest retail technology plays
RTIH Editor, Scott Thompson, brings you his top ‘future of retail’ systems launches and deployments from last week, including autonomous stores, social media partnerships, smart cart updates, and drone delivery milestones.
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