Including GO Outdoors, Ocado, and Tesco: RTIH rolls out the biggest retail technology news stories of the week
It’s Friday, the weekend is almost upon us, so let’s kick back and reflect on another eventful week for the retail systems space. Here's your briefing on the most important stories from the past five days, including Volumental, Co-op, Deliveroo, Just Eat, Uber Eats, Asos, Puma, and the 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards.
1. GO Outdoors York boosts in-store journey with Volumental technology powered GO Fit Station deployment
GO Outdoors recently opened a new store in York, boasting 125,000 sq ft of space with over 380 brands covering walking, camping and caravanning, watersports, running, fishing, horse riding, climbing, and cycling.
The retailer has developed a KUDOS RUN initiative and integrated Volumental’s 3D foot scanning and dynamic gait analysis technology as the centrepiece of its GO Fit Station.
Shoppers are able to scan their feet, walk across the dynamic pressure plate, and get personalised recommendations on their ideal type, style, and size of running shoes.
In a LinkedIn post, Volumental said: “Kudos to the entire GO Outdoors team for creating an exceptional retail experience that puts the customer first. Their commitment to innovation and delivering the right fit is a shining example of how forward thinking retailers are elevating the in-store journey.”
2. Primark announces next step in journey to nationwide store roll-out of Click & Collect service
Primark reports that 54 new stores are joining its Click & Collect service before Christmas.
The retailer is also introducing menswear to Click & Collect for the first time, launching in its 57 existing stores across England and North Wales from today.
A Primark spokesperson comments: “This is just the next step on our journey to a nationwide roll-out of Click & Collect across all our stores in England, Scotland and Wales by the end of next year. Stay tuned as more store dates and locations will be coming soon!”
3, Puma partners with Payrails on online payments and seamless checkout experiences for global shoppers
Payrails has announced a partnership with Puma to improve the sports brand’s online shopping experience for customers.
The collaboration will mean shoppers have a wider variety of payment options and receive a more seamless buying experience - no matter where they live in the world or with what method they choose to pay.
Puma will also benefit from improved payment authorisation rates and will be able to enter new markets faster while better serving existing ones.
Payrails says that it enables enterprises to build, operate, and scale payment solutions without the need for costly and complex in-house infrastructure.
Its modular technology and payment provider agnostic approach will integrate with Puma's existing systems - reducing technical complexity and improving operational efficiency.
Payrails' technology will support the integration of multiple payment service providers (PSPs) and alternative payment methods (APMs) across different regions. Its automatic payment routing intelligently directs payments to the most appropriate provider based on factors such as processing fees, purchase location, transaction value, and risk.
Through this partnership, Puma customers shopping online will benefit from localised experiences, featuring dynamic payment pages customised to their specific needs. This includes a suite of personalised payment options and an improved, user-friendly checkout experience.
4. FT Live: Future of Retail 2024 review – Tesco CEO Ken Murphy talks about the seismic impact of AI
“There have been waves of technology disruption historically. We are on the cusp of another one with AI,” said Murphy in conversation with moderator, Laura Onita, Retail Correspondent at the Financial Times, during the opening session of the conference. “AI will impact every facet of our business.”
Murphy argued that we’re already on the fourth or fifth generation of AI, starting in the late 2000s and moving into machine learning applications last decade to improve supply chains, promotions in retail and so on.
“AI has already had a huge impact,” he commented. “But we’re now into the generative AI era with ChatGPT and the like, which is even more powerful.”
“You still need to be careful and have good oversight when introducing it. But it is developing so fast you do need to embrace it. Allow yourself to make mistakes in a controlled environment.”
5. Co-op launches 24 hour delivery service in Leeds, London and Manchester via Deliveroo, Just Eat, Uber Eats
Co-op is launching 24-hour delivery from stores in city centre locations, via its partners Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats.
New research from the UK convenience retailer shows that over 40% of quick commerce shoppers would use a 11pm to 5am delivery service if available.
This figure rises to around almost one in two consumers aged between 18-44, with the service most popular for Gen Z shoppers aged 18-24 (52.3%) who are most likely to use the offering.
Further research suggested that those in London were most likely to use it (55.2%) with the data showing that those in Wales were least likely (26.47%). An estimated six million UK adults believe the main reason for this was due to their work pattern or shift.
The 24 hour service is launching this month in Leeds, London and Manchester stores where there is strong online grocery demand at non-traditional times, with stores selected based on the local demographic, a concentration of delivery driver availability and where stores are already staffed around the clock for replenishment purposes.
In addition, Co-op has also extended its online availability in more than 1,600 stores within the store’s existing opening hours, helping more customers to shop later in the evening. This is part of its ambition to reach more than a one-third share of the quick commerce market.
6. Ocado customers left fuming as online grocery retailer says sorry and cancels deliveries at last minute
Ocado customers took to social media to vent spleen after the online grocery retailer cancelled deliveries at late notice this week.
In an email sent to customers, Laura Harricks, Chief Customer Officer, Ocado Retail, said: “We’re very sorry, but we’re unable to deliver your Ocado order. Of course, you won’t be charged for this order.”
She added: “You can rebook the same order if you like. Just log in to ocado.com as normal and select ‘Rebook’ to choose a new date and time.To make it up to you, here’s a £20.00 voucher. It’s valid until 16/12/2024. Thank you for your understanding. Sincerest apologies.”
7. 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards: don’t delay, enter today!
There are only five weeks left to submit your entries for the 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards.
Deadline for submissions is Friday, 25th October.
The awards, sponsored by CADS, 3D Cloud, Retail Technology Show 2025, and Business France celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.
It's free to enter and you can do so across multiple categories.
Download our handy guide to entering the 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards.
Friday, 25th October: Award entry deadline
Tuesday, 29th October: 2024 shortlist revealed
30th October-6th November: Judging days
Thursday, 21st November: Winners announced at the 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards ceremony, to be held at RIBA’s 66 Portland Place HQ.
8. FT Live: Future of Retail 2024 review: fast fashion giant Asos drops anchor for digital marketplaces
A ‘fireside chat’ with Asos was held during the FT Live: Future of Retail 2024 event on 17th September at Convene in the City of London. This covered the digital marketplace model that the pureplay has embraced, as it seeks to expand and grow its customer base.
Chris Peduto, Head of Partnership Management at Asos, explained that they participate in digital marketplaces because third party sellers can augment their own branded clothing range, which makes up 50% of Asos’ business, without the brand owner tying up capital in excessive inventory.
The examples of Amazon and Shein have shown what is possible for retailers in this area.
“Making decisions about clothes six to nine months out means it is subject to weather risk and discounting,” said Peduto, alluding to what happens if the sunshine you were expecting doesn’t show up.
Guessing the clothing trends that will hit in any season is also notoriously hard, so having the flexibility to include others in your e-commerce platform and vice versa, plus undertake any associated marketing campaigns is useful.
Additionally, new designs can be tested in a small way, perhaps in a targeted arena, before scaling up production if it’s a hit.
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