Movies in the metaverse and smart carts in Paris: check out this week's coolest retail technology plays
RTIH Editor, Scott Thompson, brings you his top ‘future of retail’ systems launches and deployments from the past week, including Ocado Retail, Asos, Microsoft, Aldi, Instacart, Amazon, REWE Group, Walmart, Snappy Shopper, ThredUp, Warner Bros., Fandango and Roblox.
Hugo Boss
Hugo Boss has gone live with a smart fitting room in its new flagship Boss store in Düsseldorf, Germany, which has around 1,000 square metres of sales space, spread over two floors.
It worked with One iota on the project, integrating it into eight of 17 fitting rooms in the store for the first time.
This is a screen that reads items taken in via RFID, displays the items (and other items that may go with it) and allows customers to select different size/colour variants if required.
This triggers a request to an iPad app for a store member to pick the item and take it to the nominated dressing room number.
"Today more than ever, our stores are points of experience where we can offer a unique experience and individualised services to our customers,” says Oliver Timm, Chief Sales Officer and Deputy CEO at Hugo Boss.
“The aim is to inspire customers for our brands in the long term and create new opportunities to connect beyond the collections available in our stores.”
“The new Boss store in Düsseldorf demonstrates this approach, together with our flagship stores in London, Dubai, and Tokyo.”
“With our new design and hospitality concept, which reflects our premium positioning, and new digital services that are industry leading, we are taking the customer experience to the next level.”
Ocado Retail
Ocado Retail says it has become the first major supermarket to pilot a new reusable packaging scheme, specially designed for online, in an effort to reduce the use of single-use packaging from customers' weekly shops.
The trial, staged across two phases, will use a reusable vessel, developed specifically to deliver food cupboard staples and laundry products at scale, with no extra cost to the customer.
Phase one, starting in August, will include Ocado Reuse Basmati Rice 2kg and Ocado Reuse Penne Pasta 1kg.
Phase two, coming later this year, will add Ocado Reuse Non-Bio-Liquid Detergent 3L and Ocado Reuse Skies Fabric Conditioner 3L to the trial.
The reusable container is pre-filled with product and delivered to customers alongside the rest of their Ocado shop.
Customers then return the empty container to their next driver. The containers are then collected from Ocado and hygienically washed before being filled again at the supplier. Each vessel replaces up to five single-use plastic items and is designed to be used over 60 times.
Kenco
Kenco, a third-party logistics (3PL) provider, reports that AutoStore, an automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS), is live at the company’s Jeffersonville, Ind. distribution centre in the USA.
Designed in conjunction with KPI Solutions, the system is Kenco’s largest AutoStore installation, with 49,000 bins, 130 grid robots, 10 picking ports and four replenishment ports.
Specifically designed to meet the needs of Kenco’s fulfilment customers, the AutoStore ASRS’ cubic layout quadruples storage capacity vs. traditional warehouse racking.
The system maximises existing labour and space, enabling 24/7 fulfilment and covering about a quarter of one facility at the Jeffersonville campus.
Asos
Asos has signed a new AI related three-year agreement with Microsoft.
The online retailer is already tapping AI features integrated into Microsoft solutions.
This includes process automation through Power Automate; automated meeting summaries, notes, actions, and live translations through Teams Premium; and Microsoft Copilot, including Copilot for Microsoft 365 and Copilot for Github.
“A core part of our business strategy is driving operational excellence within Asos: making sure we’re as fast, efficient, and effective as we can be, and investing our time and resources in the projects that matter,” says Victoria Arden, Director of Technology Operations at Asos.
“Under this new agreement, we’re helping Asosers safely experiment with generative AI tools that can remove ‘busy work’ from their day, freeing them up to unlock greater creativity and insights and focus on delighting our customers.”
Franprix
A2Z Smart Technologies Corp. has announced the first deployment of its new generation Cust2Mate 3.0 smart shopping carts at Franprix in Paris, France.
Franprix is a grocery chain that operates over 600 stores in France.
The launch is part of a framework agreement with IR2S to deploy 30,000 smart carts until 2026 across retail chains in France.
The A2Z Cust2Mate smart shopping carts that were deployed feature an all in one clip-on panel equipped with AI technology, self-scanning, and in-cart payments for a "pick and go" experience.
The 3.0 carts aim to enable the "connected store," combining online and physical shopping to offer exclusive promotions and personalised product recommendations as if shopping online.
Customers based in Paris were able to use them for the first time during a public launch on Monday
Aldi and Instacart
Instacart and Aldi South Group are to expand their partnership globally.
This includes the roll-out of Instacart’s Connected Stores technologies across the retailer’s stores in the US, including In-Store mode and Carrot Tags, as well as fulfilment technology to power e-commerce orders.
And in a European first, Aldi South Group is testing Caper Carts in Austria, Instacart’s AI powered smart carts designed to ease the checkout process and personalise the shopping experience for customers.
Since 2017, Aldi has partnered with Instacart to provide same-day delivery for its customers in the US and will now deploy several Connected Stores technologies to further digitise its stores including:
In-Store mode: This helps customers see what’s in-stock, get important details about items on their list, sort items by aisle, and access in-store promotions and discounts through the Instacart app.
Carrot Tags: These have pick-to-light capabilities, meaning that Instacart shoppers can select an item on their phone and the corresponding shelf label will flash. Carrot Tags have launched in more than 100 Aldi stores in Illinois and Ohio and will roll-out nationwide in the coming months.
Pickup fulfilment technology: By leveraging the technology behind the Instacart Shopper app, Aldi South Group is streamlining fulfllment to power its e-commerce pickup orders.
Caper Carts: Customers can find the carts near the store entrance, start shopping by adding items directly into the cart, and keep an eye on their running total via the digital screen. Checkout is available through a “fast lane” if the customer is paying by card.
Amazon
Amazon has opened its first micromobility hub in Norfolk at its delivery station in Norwich.
This houses a fleet of new electric cargo bikes which will deliver thousands of packages per week to Amazon customers, taking traditional delivery vans off city centre roads.
Norwich joins more than 40 cities in the UK and across Europe which have Amazon micromobility hubs facilitating electric cargo bike and on-foot deliveries.
As part of a £300 million investment to electrify and decarbonise Amazon’s UK transportation network, electric cargo bikes and walkers are now expected to make millions of deliveries to customers across the UK every year.
REWE Group
A sixth REWE Pick & Go will soon open in Hamburg, Germany.
In a LinkedIn post, Prof. Dr. Stephan Rüschen of Baden-Wuerttemberg Cooperative State University, said: “My business students from the DHBW Heilbronn were allowed to help with the testing on the excursion to Hamburg. We tried out many shopping scenarios...And that's more than you think.”
He added: “Many thanks to Alina Klüger from the REWE team for this insight 'Behind the Scenes'. Note: Actually, it's already the seventh, but the store at Cologne's Heumarkt was closed a few months ago.”
In July, REWE Group reported that another location in Hamburg had launched Pick&Go.
Powered by Trigo technology, the store, which clocks in at 1.200 square metres in floor space and features 20.000 items, is pitched as Europe’s largest computer vision-based supermarket.
It is also the first REWE Pick&Go store in northern Germany, and offers four ways to pay for purchases: cashless via Pick&Go via app; scanning and paying at the self-checkout terminal; shopping via computer vision support without scanning at the self-checkout terminal; standard payment process at the cash register.
Warner Bros., Fandango and Roblox
This includes an integrated virtual Fandango box office, where eligible users can purchase movie tickets - a first for the Roblox platform as it tests and invests in commerce.
[Beetlejuice] Escape the Afterlife was developed by Sawhorse and provides Warner Bros. the opportunity to expand its reach with new audiences and ways to increase content viewership, as well as drive ticket sales.
“We are always looking to engage audiences and amplify our reach in new and exciting ways; this first of its kind collaboration with Roblox and Fandango for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice allows for just that,” says Cameron Curtis, Executive VP of Marketing, Warner Bros.
“By leveraging the vast Roblox creator community, we are not only able to connect with existing Beetlejuice fans, but also have the opportunity to reach new audiences who are being introduced to him for the first time.
And we are thrilled to be the first studio to test ticketing on the platform.”
“We are excited to collaborate with Warner Bros. and Roblox on this unique in-world experience and test the first ever virtual Fandango box office for the much anticipated Beetlejuice Beetlejuice movie,” says Will McIntosh, Fandango President.
“We are champions of the big screen and remain committed to reaching new fans through innovative, one of a kind experiences that drive increased theatre attendance.”
Walmart
And on Monday, it officially went live.
No Boundaries is a recently revamped private label aimed at young adults.
“Refreshing our private brand portfolio is critical to our fashion strategy as we evolve our assortment to resonate not only with our core customers, but the next generation of Walmart shoppers,” said Jen Jackson Brown, Senior Vice President of Walmart US fashion brands, in June.
“There’s a huge opportunity for Walmart to reach a Gen Z customer with a brand that has both incredible style and unbelievable prices.”
“We have 145 million US customers shopping with us in stores and online each week, and the new No Boundaries brand is designed and marketed with intention to reach this young adult audience by focusing on fit, quality, style and fabrics that resonate with them.”
The launch in Walmart Discovered on Roblox enables users to shop and try on the retailer’s first UGC drop, featuring virtual versions of real-world No Boundaries items; the UGC have also been styled by a Roblox creator.
It’s possible to buy real-world No Boundaries items from three fashion trends and get a virtual item designed by Dioncella, a Roblox creator, for free
Users can also buy the first ever Animation Pack, a platform offering inspired by No Boundaries.
ThredUp
ThredUp, an online resale platform for apparel, shoes, and accessories, has unveiled a new suite of AI powered shopping tools designed to improve the way customers discover unique fashion finds.
“AI presents an enormous leap forward for secondhand shopping by bringing emotion and storytelling to the millions of unique shopping journeys that happen regularly on ThredUp,” says James Reinhart, CEO at ThredUp.
“Given the breadth of our offering with millions of unique items available in our marketplace at any given time, generative AI technology is accelerating how we’re changing the way consumers shop and providing the easiest and most fun way to shop sustainably.”
The AI powered search is built on machine learning algorithms that understand natural language and visual cues. These algorithms continuously learn and improve, ensuring that customers get the most relevant and personalised results.
Snappy Shopper and SGF
Snappy Shopper has partnered with Scottish Grocers Federation’s Healthy Living Programme (HLP).
The aim here is to boost community engagement by enabling local retailers to actively participate in promoting well-being.
To kick off the partnership, the pair will offer free bananas every Wednesday throughout August.
Alongside this, they will provide educational materials on the benefits of healthy eating and practical tips for maintaining a balanced diet.
Designed to support families during the summer holidays and ease the transition back to school, the tie up also aims to promote healthy eating habits among children and adults alike.
Amazon
Amazon has announced an advancement in the technology behind Just Walk Out, its checkout-free service for retailers.
A new multi-modal foundation model increases its accuracy by using the same transformer-based machine learning models underlying many generative AI applications, and applies them to physical stores.
In an online post, Jon Jenkins, Vice President, Just Walk Out technology, AWS Applications, said: “We accomplish this by analysing data from cameras and sensors throughout the store simultaneously, instead of looking at which items shoppers pick up and put back in a linear sequence.”
“For retailers, the new AI system makes Just Walk Out faster, easier to deploy, and more efficient. For shoppers, this means worry free shopping at even more third-party checkout-free stores worldwide.”
B&Q
B&Q is trialling a robot delivery option in Milton Keynes with DPD.
Customers will be notified in advance about that their order (related to smaller parcels) being delivered. Once they confirm they will be home to accept the parcel, a robot will be dispatched.
The deliveries are trackable on a map and shoppers are notified when the robot reaches their property. They are then given a code to unlock a compartment and retrieve their parcel.
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