Amazon takes on Temu and Shein with Haul: RTIH rustles up the retail technology week in numbers
Do you like numbers? Do you like retail systems news? Then this is the article for you. Including Amazon, Wonder, Grubhub, M&S, Bitcoin, Polytag, Ocado, Brightpick, Sensei, and Brain Corp.
$1.3 trillion …Bitcoin soared to a record breaking $93,000 on Wednesday, bringing its market cap to $1.3 trillion and placing it just behind Amazon’s $1.8 trillion valuation and ahead of Nvidia’s $1.2 trillion.
deVere Group, a financial advisory and asset management organisation, forecasts that the cryptocurrency could surpass Amazon as soon as January, reshaping the ranks of the world’s most valuable assets, currently led by Apple ($3 trillion), Microsoft ($2.8 trillion), and Saudi Aramco ($2.1 trillion).
“Bitcoin’s unprecedented rise to $93,000 reflects an extraordinary shift in global markets,” says Nigel Green, CEO oat deVere Group. “As we approach the start of a new US administration under President-Elect Trump, pro-crypto policies are expected to accelerate Bitcoin’s growth.”
“Trump’s stance on reducing regulatory friction for digital assets has injected a new wave of confidence among investors. This momentum could push Bitcoin into the top ranks of global assets, surpassing major corporations, such as Amazon, within a matter of weeks.”
Bitcoin’s 2024 rally is underpinned by concerns about a new wave of inflation and the increasing demand for decentralised assets. Investors view Bitcoin as a hedge against economic uncertainty, given its scarcity and independence from traditional financial systems.
“Bitcoin’s potential to surpass Amazon and join the ranks of the top five valued companies would have been unthinkable a few years ago,” Green adds. “This isn’t just about price - it's about a broader financial revolution. Investors are recognising that Bitcoin is not just another asset; it’s a shift in how value is stored, transferred, and recognised globally.
“Institutions’ growing interest has lent Bitcoin the credibility it needs to attract large-scale investments. Financial giants, from asset management firms to publicly traded corporations, are adopting Bitcoin as part of a diversified strategy. This shift reflects Bitcoin’s transformation from a niche asset to a recognised, strategic asset class.”
He adds: “As we witness increasing institutional participation, Bitcoin is no longer simply a retail phenomenon. The continuous inflow of capital from major players adds resilience, and that’s key to its stability as it pushes towards larger market caps. With Amazon in sight, Bitcoin’s potential appears almost boundless.”
$650 million…Marc Lore founded startup Wonder is acquiring Grubhub, a food ordering and delivery platform with more than 375,000 merchants and 200,000 delivery partners across the United States.
According to a press release: “Integrating Grubhub with Wonder is the next step in Wonder’s mission to make great food more accessible, bringing together the convenience, speed and selection of first-party and third-party restaurants, groceries and meal kits in a single app order. Additionally, all Wonder locations will be available on Grubhub for third-party delivery.”
Wonder will acquire Grubhub from Just Eat Takeaway.com for $650 million. Completion is expected during Q1 2025, subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approvals.
Wonder has also announced an additional $250 million in capital raised exclusively from new investors.
$19 million…Bounce, a global luggage storage network and US travel company, has announced a $19 million Series B funding round. The round was led by Sapphire Sport and included other new investors such as Thayer Ventures, FJ Labs, 20VC Growth, and Shilling, as well as existing backers Andreessen Horowitz and General Catalyst.
Bounce will use the cash to drive growth and expand its storage services to travellers and locals, including in the UK where it has more than 670 partners, including London, Edinburgh, Manchester and Cardiff.
Launched in 2019, it powers a storage network of more than 13,000 partners in 100 countries. Named the eighth fastest growing private company in the US by Inc5000 earlier this year, it has stored over six million bags to date, and says that it has generated tens of millions of dollars for small business partners since its Series A in 2022.
$20 and $10…Amazon has announced Haul, a discount storefront offering cheap items like $3 handbags, to directly compete with Chinese marketplaces like Temu and Shein.
A US beta launched this week in the Amazon Shopping app.
Haul mostly ships products directly from China with slower delivery and stricter returns, which allows for much lower prices. This comes after Amazon recently imposed price caps on Chinese sellers using its platform in anticipation of stricter US and China trade regulations. However, it now seems like the company wants its own piece of the pie.
All items are priced $20 or less with the majority priced $10 and under, and some items as low as $1. Customers can get further savings when they add more items to a single order, with 5% off orders $50 and over, and 10% off orders $75 or more.
“Finding great products at very low prices is important to customers, and we continue to explore ways that we can work with our selling partners so they can offer products at ultra low prices,” says Dharmesh Mehta, Vice President of Worldwide Selling Partner Services at Amazon.
“Amazon Haul aims to help make shopping for fashion, home, lifestyle, electronics, and other products even more fun, easy, and affordable, all backed by Amazon’s A-to-Z product guarantee so customers can shop with confidence that the products they’re purchasing are safe, authentic, and in the condition expected. It’s early days for this experience, and we’ll continue to listen to customers as we refine and expand it in the weeks and months to come.”
60 and 100…M&S has expanded its Beauty Takeback Scheme, in partnership with HANDLE, to an additional 60 stores across the UK, bringing the total number to 100.
Dedicated beauty takeback scheme boxes are now available in new locations including Birmingham Bullring, Cardiff, and Inverness.
Launched in June 2023 as part of the retailer’s Plan A roadmap to Net Zero, the scheme enables customers to recycle any form of plastic or aluminium beauty packaging - from bottles and tubes to caps, pumps, and tubs – from any retailer, by dropping their used beauty packaging into boxes located within the store’s beauty section.
Since launching, the scheme has processed over 1.6 tonnes of beauty packaging which otherwise might have ended up in landfill. As part of M&S’ partnership with HANDLE, this year it has produced a wide-toothed hair comb, made from at least 98% of the recycled packaging collected by M&S. The comb will be available to purchase online and in selected stores for £8.
60…Polytag has bolstered its partnership with Ocado Retail, with the online grocery retailer expanding its range of products that use the firm’s technology.
Over 60 of Ocado’s food, drink, and household product ranges now feature Polytag’s Digital Link QR codes, enabling consumers to delve deeper into product information and sustainability practices with a simple scan.
The expanded range of Polytag enabled packaging follows the success of the project Polytag ran with Ocado Retail in 2023 to deliver a nationwide digital deposit return scheme (DDRS) trial.
Over eight weeks, 20,000 20p rewards were given to consumers that had purchased - and recycled - Ocado's milk bottles via standard kerbside collection methods. Post-trial surveys revealed that 93% of the pilot users felt ‘positively’ towards the idea of a DDRS in the UK.
The initiative will now see the online grocer package dry food and cleaning products in refillable containers to reduce single-use plastic and encourage reuse behaviours. Polytag’s QR codes will be used to educate customers on how to take part in the refill scheme and return their products.
$1.4 million…Swedish startup Indivd, which has developed technology for footfall analysis and visitor insights, has raised $1.4 million.
The investment comes from both existing owners and new investors within the retail sector, including Per Setterberg (Senior Advisor at EQT and former CEO of Global Blue) and Carl Setterberg (former CFO at H&M Tech).
The cash will be used to accelerate growth and prepare for a larger funding round next year.
"After nearly 20 years in retail, I know how challenging it is for stores to understand customer movement and in-store behaviours. Indivd has found a solution to this problem, something that was previously only possible online," says Setterberg.
"They are using AI in a smart and innovative way to solve a real issue. With their competent team, I'm convinced they can make a significant impact in the industry."
Indivd has been on the market for a year and has customers in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and the United States.
£2.75 million…Salesfire - a UK company whose platform helps e-commerce stores to increase sales - has raised a further £2.75 million from NPIF II - Mercia Equity Finance, which is managed by Mercia Ventures as part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II (NPIF II).
The funding will enable the company to incorporate its latest AI powered technology into its platform and create over ten new jobs in the next two years.
Salesfire’s software creates a comprehensive profile of every individual visiting a company’s website, and uses behavioural cues to understand their interests and shopping behaviour. It enables retailers to personalise the customer experience, guide shoppers through the buying funnel to improve conversion rates, then re-engage with them and build a one-to-one relationship.
The Middlesbrough-based company is developing new AI technology that will give deeper insights into customer behaviour, such as recognising anonymous individuals with different user accounts, and will be particularly valuable once existing tracking tools such as cookies are phased out.
$12 million…Brightpick has raised an additional $12 million to accelerate its roll-out in the US.
This brings its total funding to $47 million, with $35 million invested by Photoneo since Brightpick spun out in 2021.
The round saw participation from new investor EBRD Venture Capital alongside continued support from existing backers like ESET founder Miroslav Trnka and Avast founders Eduard Kucera and Pavel Baudis.
Brightpick says: “With a growing team of over 200 employees and 300 AI robots already deployed for customers, we are gaining strong traction, especially in the US, which will contribute 50% of our revenue this year.”
48%…New YouGov research finds that 48% of UK consumers who buy Christmas gifts are not influenced by Black Friday, Cyber Monday or any other last minute deals.
Despite the squeeze on personal finances, 69% will spend the same or more than they did last year with one in five set to splurge £500 or more. The way consumers shop is also changing with 19% heading to TikTok Shop this year.
Amongst the deal hunters, 43% of consumers are waiting for promotions before they start spending. 63% are holding out for discounts of at least 20% and 8% will wait for products to hit half price before spending.
The research was commissioned by Advanced Supply Chain and sister company ReBound Returns with 2,085 Brits surveyed.
250 billion…Brain Corp reports that its fleet of over 37,000 autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), powered by the BrainOS Robotics Platform, has now covered more than 250 billion square feet of space globally.
To put this scale into perspective, 250 billion square feet is equivalent to covering the entire landmass of New York CIty almost 30 times, 4.34 million football fields, or 89 million tennis courts. In addition to the area covered, Brain Corp’s fleet also reached more than 19 million hours of autonomous operation, equal to over 2,100 years of continuous operation.
"This latest milestone is a testament not only to the success of Brain Corp, but to the shift we’re seeing toward automation across sectors,” says David Pinn, CEO at Brain Corp. "Whether it’s optimising inventory management or creating cleaner, safer environments, our autonomy solutions are helping organisations tackle their most complex operational challenges."
55%…As consumers ready themselves for Black Friday and Christmas, UK financial institution TSB is urging consumers to be vigilant when shopping online as it reveals purchase fraud accounted for 55% of all fraud cases this year.
New TSB data also shows that social media platforms continue to lead to significant fraud losses for consumers. It found that Facebook accounted for 67% of all purchase fraud losses by volume, and 59% by value. This is followed by Instagram, which accounts for 16% of purchase fraud by volume, and 29% by value.
UK Finance data shows that £42 million was lost to purchase fraud alone in the first half of 2024 – and with almost 70,000 cases over this period, that averages 375 cases every day.
1…Sensei has celebrated one year of its Verona autonomous store with DAO Cooperativa.
In a LinkedIn post, the company said: “One year ago, we proudly opened Italy’s first autonomous store with DAO Conad, marking our debut in Italy and a major step in redefining retail.”
“Over the past 12 months, nearly one million visitors have enjoyed our store’s seamless experience, with an impressive 47 second average checkout time. This milestone reaffirms our commitment to transforming retail in Italy through cutting-edge, checkout-free technology. From our start in Verona to our latest store in Trento, we’re just getting started.”
It added: “A big shoutout to our amazing Sensei team, who worked tirelessly to deliver an outstanding customer experience. Thank you to our dedicated team and loyal customers - here’s to more success and innovation ahead as we continue expanding our presence.”
In an online post, Yahoo noted that the debate over whether people should still be able to use cash in stores and businesses is continuing as a committee of MPs called for evidence on whether new rules are needed to make it mandatory to accept physical money.
It added that the use of cash in the UK has declined over the past decade, with industry data showing it was used in just 12% of transactions in 2023. The number of people who don't carry cash has trebled since 2019, according to research by ATM network LINK, despite 71% of people still relying on it to some extent on a daily basis.
There are currently no regulations which require businesses to accept cash, which the aforementioned Treasury committee suggests could be a problem for some institutions and vulnerable people.
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