Keeping you in the loop: the retail technology news stories you might have missed last week

Failed to keep up with the breaking retail technology news last week? Then have no fear as we have you covered. Here are the major stories that you need to know about. Includes Ground Up, Leroy Merlin, Hanshow, Wolt, Crew Clothing, Cegid, Holland & Barrett, Xiatech, OneStock, Michael Kors, Mastercard, Fila China, and Volumental.

Mineral water brand Volvic launches 3D programmatic digital out-of-home campaign at London Underground stations

Wavemaker UK, Global and DOOH.com have collaborated on a 3D programmatic digital out-of-home (DOOH) ad campaign for the launch of a new Touch of Fruit Sparkling range from Volvic.

For the next seven weeks, commuters and passers-by at Kings Cross and Waterloo London Underground stations will see Touch of Fruit Sparkling 3D cans popping out from digital screens.

The experience includes digital outdoor ads situated in close proximity to stockists, encouraging consumers to discover the new sparkling fruity flavoured drinks at their earliest convenience. 

The campaign marks the first time a 3D DOOH campaign has been programmatically bought and activated and it has been made possible thanks to the offering from Global via its Digital Ad Exchange (DAX). 

Sneaker company Ground Up launches immersive retail experience at its new New York City HQ

Sneaker company, Ground Up, showcased its new Experience Room in its NYC headquarters during the FFANY Week event this month.

This, according to a press release, is part of its vision to “create a one of a kind engaging space where guests can step into the world of their favourite characters; creating personal connections with fandoms they love”.

"Showcasing our innovative products through the eyes of our fans sets us apart from our competitors. We enable our partners to understand the emotions that drive our consumers when they encounter our products in retail stores," says Jack Gindi, Ground Up International's CEO.

"We are focusing on increasing our in-store activations across our partner base, elevating and bringing these installations to life with our retail partners.” 

Home improvement and gardening retailer Leroy Merlin deploys Hanshow electronic self labels across French stores

Hanshow and Leroy Merlin have partnered to deploy ESLs across over 50,000 products integrated with the the latter’s mobile app in France.

Customers can now experience easy product geolocation and personalised recommendations in Leroy Merlin stores. After 18 months of R&D, the retailer implemented a fully customised solution in all its outlets.

Leroy Merlin’s integration of Hanshow ESL into its app offers geolocation in-store to guide customers to products and aisles.

The ESL solution also provides price consistency between online and offline channels, boosting the user experience with various features such as customer reviews, enriched product descriptions, access the Home Index to assess a product's environmental and social impact, and the ability to flash labels directly from the application.

Wolt Capital financing service goes live for merchants in Sweden, Poland, Finland and Denmark following pilot

Finnish delivery company, Wolt, has announced the launch of Wolt Capital, a new service promising fast and simple access to additional financing for merchants.

It is partnering with finmid to offer this.

Edward Daka, Product Lead, Banking & Payouts at Wolt, says: “We are always listening to our partners and adapting our services and offerings to meet their needs. Fast and simple access to capital has regularly come up in our talks with merchants.”

“That’s why today, we’re excited to introduce Wolt Capital. This initiative is designed to support the success and growth of merchants, giving them the opportunity to access transparent financing.”

Holland & Barrett invests in MRI Software AI footfall analytics for its 1,000+ UK and Europe stores

MRI Software has announced a partnership with Holland & Barrett, a UK health and wellness retailer that has over 1,000 stores across the UK and Europe.

By leveraging AI driven technology from MRI OnLocation for Footfall Analytics, Holland & Barrett will gain insights into store performance metrics within its portfolio as well as visibility relative to the broader UK market.

Michael Kors set to debut Shopping Muse, an AI shopping assistant from Mastercard company Dynamic Yield

Michael Kors is adopting Shopping Muse, a retail assistant from Dynamic Yield, a Mastercard company.

Michael Kors is the first retailer to make Shopping Muse and its generative AI capabilities available to consumers through an integration on its website in the US.

The aim is to recreate the in-store experience by translating consumers’ colloquial language into tailored product recommendations, meaning consumers can quickly find the perfect look that matches their inquiry as well as their demonstrated behaviour and preferences.

Dynamic Yield CEO Ori Bauer says: “As a trailblazer in ready-to-wear fashion, Michael Kors is a perfect example of how to put our ready to use technology to use.”

“Shopping Muse is helping translate the signature Michael Kors service to the digital world, delivering a satisfying shopping experience as singular and impactful as the brand’s aesthetic.”

Crew Clothing Company expands its Cegid Retail Store Excellence partnership to adopt Newsfeed feature

Cegid has expanded its partnership with Crew Clothing, with the brand now implementing the Newsfeed feature within Cegid Retail Store Excellence.

The British lifestyle label has been a user of the task management and retail operations platform since 2009 and has just rolled-out Newsfeed to its 105 stores.

This aims to bridge the gap between Crew’s management and store teams.

It’s helping the teams see not only company wide updates but also updates based on their store, role and interests.

The Newsfeed feature will also be rolled-out to Crew Clothing’s latest openings in Canterbury, Stow-on-the-Wold, and soon to launch stores in Monmouth and London Paddington.

Chipotle Mexican Grill launches new mobile app for UK market and offers free meals for first digital purchases

Chipotle Mexican Grill has announced the launch of its new mobile app in the UK, which aims to replicate the nuances of the in-restaurant ordering experience.

At checkout, users can select a restaurant location and pick-up time that is most convenient for them.

Additionally, Chipotle can now provide its guests with personalised offers and incentives that can be redeemed at any of its 19 restaurant locations across the country.  

It is offering a free meal to all customers once they make their first digital purchase on the new app or on online. This will appear in their Chipotle UK account within 72 hours of their initial meal purchase.  

"We are keenly focused on increasing access to our fresh food in the UK. The Chipotle UK app is the fastest way for our guests to try Chipotle and will better allow us to tailor our offerings and promotions to their individual preferences,” says Jacob M Summer, Director of European Operations.

Xiatech and OneStock announce launch of second annual Business Value of MACH Technologies Survey

Xiatech, the company behind Xfuze, an AI powered composable hyper-integration platform, and distributed order management specialists, OneStock, have launched the second annual Business Value of MACH Technologies Survey.

Supported by Mapp, Mercaux, Optimove, Pimberly, Sitoo and the MACH Alliance, and running under the Power of MACH brand, the purpose of this global survey is to develop the most comprehensive benchmark into the value of composability and, specifically, MACH technologies, which has witnessed significant adoption over the last four years.

Gartner estimates that by 2027, at least 60% of new B2C and B2B digital commerce solutions, developed for the cloud, will be aligned with MACH architecture principles.

Yusen Logistics boosts warehouse operations by deploying robotics and visibility platform DexoryView from Dexory

Yusen Logistics, whose end customers include electronics manufacturers, has implemented DexoryView from Dexory, a specialist in AI powered robotics and visibility solutions.

As a result, it is now able to conduct wall to wall scans of its entire warehouse within two hours each day.

This process used to take over one and a half weeks each month and over 100 hours of manual labour.

Previously, Yusen Logistics carried out two annual wall-to-wall checks of the entire warehouse, but through generating real-time data each day, the company has also been able to remove this task completely, saving an additional 205 hours of work annually. 

RTIH Innovation Awards winner Volumental snags Fila China FitTech deal across retailer’s flagship stores

Fila China has chosen Volumental’s 3D foot scanning and footwear recommendations solution for its flagship stores in Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Guangzhou, and Xiamen.

In a LinkedIn post, Volumental said: “This partnership between Fila and Volumental FitTech marks a new era in personalised shopping experiences, helping shoppers in China find their perfect fit with ease.”