Delivery robotics is the next wave of urban logistics: RTIH brings you the retail technology week in numbers

Do you like numbers? Do you like retail systems news? Then this is the article for you. Including EE, Morrisons, Starship Technologies, Ikea UK, Patchworks, Sainsbury’s, Wonder, Gymshark, Royal Mail, Grubhub, and e.l.f. Cosmetics.

1...e.l.f. Cosmetics, a brand from e.l.f. Beauty, has announced a partnership with Twitch, powered by Amazon Ads, making it the first brand to run an all new and native in-stream live shopping element on the popular streaming service.

The tie up allows viewers to purchase e.l.f. products directly through Twitch streams without interrupting their viewing experience. The eyes.lips.first. shoppable element will initially appear on e.l.f.'s official Twitch channel, e.l.f.YOU!

“When we launched e.l.f.YOU! on Twitch, our vision was simple yet bold - to meet our community where they play, create and connect. Live Streaming on Twitch has always been about self-expression, and we saw an opportunity to ‘game-up’ the space by bringing beauty into the conversation and creating a safe space for every eye, lip and face,” says Patrick O'Keefe, Chief Integrated Marketing Communications Officer at e.l.f. Beauty.

“From the start, e.l.f.YOU! was designed to empower female gamers, celebrate creativity and build confidence at the intersection of makeup and the streaming culture. We didn’t just want to show up on Twitch - we wanted to level it up, amplify voices that were often overlooked and prove that beauty belongs everywhere.”

£2.25 billion...Ikea UK has announced retail sales of £2.25 billion for financial year 2025. Whilst an annual decrease of 2.1% compared with FY24 sales (£2.30 billion), the retailer saw an upward sales trend in the last quarter of the year (+3.3%), which continued into September 2025 (FY26). 

Amid limited UK economic growth, high interest rates and rising living costs, the retailer said that it maintained a stable market share.  

Following a £117 million investment in price reductions during FY24, it accelerated its expansion in FY25 with four new store openings in the final quarter and the addition of 101 'Collect Near You' points. These initiatives contributed to a 4% increase in sales volumes year-on-year. 

“In a challenging environment marked by economic and trade uncertainties, rising cost-of-living pressures and weakened consumer confidence, I am proud that we continued our programme of strategic investments in the UK to build a more affordable, accessible and sustainable Ikea. We saw these investments begin to pay off in the final months of FY25 and now into FY26, which gives us confidence for the year ahead,” says Peter Jelkeby, CEO and CSO at Ikea UK

73% of US consumers say they plan to shop at discount retailers such as Dollar General, Dollar Tree, and Five Below this holiday season, according to new research from VTEX.

According to its survey of 1,000 people, Millennials showed the strongest intent, with 53% stating they are very likely to make discount stores part of their holiday shopping. Social media is also fueling purchase decisions: 28% of respondents have been influenced by TikTok or Instagram holiday shopping content featuring discount stores, a number that rises to 52% among Gen Z.

“Discount store chains are no longer holding an advantage with their competitive pricing alone,” says Mariano Gomide de Faria, Founder and Co-CEO at VTEX.

“They have continued to take noticeable share from Amazon and the big-box giants on value, while social media apps such as TikTok have turned dollar stores into discovery engines for Gen Z. At the same time, Gen X and Millennials, already familiar with these formats, continue to rely on discounters as trusted destinations as the heavy cost of daily life requires them to keep holiday spending in check.”

$50 million...Autonomous delivery specialist, Starship Technologies, reports the completion of a $50 million funding round led by Plural.

The company, founded by Skype co-founders Ahti Heinla and Janus Friis, has now raised more than $280 million in total funding as it looks to replicate its progress in European cities and US university campuses across American urban markets.

“Delivery robotics is the next wave of urban logistics, shaping a once-in-a-generation shift in how goods move through cities,” says Heinla.

“We own European urban markets, we own US campuses. Now it’s time to replicate this proven success in American cities. Millions of US consumers will soon experience sub-30-minute delivery by Starship robots  as the new standard.”

Starship Technologies

1...Sainsbury’s Rugby supermarket has become the first complete trial store for the UK grocery giant’s Smartshop Pay on Handset technology.

A pilot launched earlier this year, with shoppers able to pay directly on handheld SmartShop devices, skipping the need to go to the checkout.

While app users have been able to pay on their smartphones since 2022, the initiative marks the first time Sainsbury’s customers are able to complete payment in-store without using a traditional till.

In a LinkedIn post, Rosie Winning, Lead Customer Experience Manager at Sainsbury’s, said: “Something exciting is coming to Rugby….Smartshop Pay on Handset will launch on Monday 13th October.”

She added: “Great day this week to get some of the teams together to discuss how we impact our customers, expand the customer journey and deliver improved technologies for a streamlined front end.”

“We are extremely proud and excited to be the first complete trial store for this technology. The support teams have been instrumental and fantastic in helping us get ready to launch.”

$165 million...Dexory, a provider of real-time warehouse intelligence, visibility and autonomous solutions, has raised $165 million, building on the company’s Series B in 2024.

Eurazeo, through its Growth team, led the $100 million Series C round, with participation from LTS Growth and Endeavor Catalyst, alongside existing backers DTCP, Atomico, Lakestar, Elaia, Latitude Ventures, Wave-X and others. In addition, Bootstrap Europe expanded the existing growth debt facility. 

Since its Series B, Dexory has expanded the reach of its AI enabled data intelligence platform, DexoryView, across Europe, North America, and APAC, and established its North American headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee. Today, the platform is used by logistics specialists such as GXO, Maersk and DHL; manufacturers including Stellantis and GE Appliances; and by customers across pharmaceuticals, retail and e-commerce. 

The new funding will accelerate Dexory’s product roadmap and expand access to its technology, with the aim of removing key bottlenecks in warehouse transformation.

“This new round allows us to bring forward transformational capabilities that our customers are asking for,” says Andrei Danescu, CEO and Co-Founder at Dexory. “By combining full stack engineering with zero customer complexity, we are building advanced agentic systems powered by the industry’s richest set of real-world logistics data. This will help warehouses and supply chains shift from systems of record to true systems of action.”

£2.5 million...UK cybersecurity startup Ploy has raised £2.5 million in a funding round led by Osney Capital, with participation from Superseed, Tiny.vc and Rule30.

This is alongside angels including Johnathan Scudder (co-founder of ForgeRock), Alastair Paterson and James Chappell (co-founders of Digital Shadows), Mark Ryan (VP of Product Management at ZScaler), Jonathan Tom (VP of GTM Enablement at Rapid7), Tony Pepper and Neil Larkins (co-founders of Egress) and Charles Delingpole ((co-founder of ComplyAdvantage, MarketFinance, and The Student Room).

“Identity sprawl has become a significant issue for organisations of all shapes and sizes, but particularly those with modern technology stacks; which often comprise hundreds, or even thousands, of SaaS applications” says Joshua Walter, Partner at Osney Capital, who will join Ploy's board.

“This breadth causes fragmented and distributed access and ownership of identity, without unified visibility or control, and is typically enabled using role-base access controls. Ploy’s just-in-time approach to access, making all access temporary by default, and identifying risks centrally in real-time, is becoming the only approach that scales with modern threats, ways of working and technology stacks.”

Ploy's customer base includes companies like Payfit, Not On The High Street, Welcome to the Jungle, ComplyAdvantage, Liberis, and Times Higher Education.

45,000...Royal Mail is looking to almost double its number of out of home parcel points - including shops, lockers and parcel postboxes - to 45,000 locations by 2030.

The company has been expanding its multi-channel network over the last two years, launching parcel lockers and more recently its Royal Mail Shop brand, as part of a move to meet growing demand for people wanting to drop off and collect parcels outside of the home. This is driven by the continued rise of online shopping and the rapid growth of marketplaces like Vinted.

With the planned expansion, customers in urban areas will be within a five-minute walk of a Royal Mail parcel point, with targets of five and 15 minutes maximum drivetime for suburban and rural areas respectively.

Parcel points are in addition to its 115,000 postboxes, which can be used for parcels small enough to fit through a letterbox, whilst 3,500 postboxes are being modernised to accept larger parcels up to the size of a shoebox.

£5 million...Patchworks has closed a £5 million funding round led by Gresham House Ventures, its main investor, with growth lending from Palatine Growth Credit.

Bringing the total funding to date to £16.3 million, this will be invested in expanding sales and marketing to reach more enterprise retailers and brands, driving growth in the North American market, building on early traction in the region, and investing in product development, including new AI features.

The company helps retailers integrate systems across e-commerce, ERP, PoS, PIM, CRM, CDP and fulfilment, with the aim of avoiding common issues like overselling, delayed orders, and inefficient manual data entry.

Jim Herbert, CEO at Patchworks, says: “This follow on investment is a huge vote of confidence in our platform and our strategy. Retailers and brands need flexible, future-proof infrastructure to stay competitive, and Patchworks gives them the power and speed they need.”

“We’re doubling down on the US market, scaling our partner ecosystem, and continuing to enhance the platform with AI and other innovations so our customers can connect, adapt and grow faster.”

Patchworks

$1.7 million...Unfabled, a women's health specialist which was founded in 2021 by former Unilever executive Hannah Samano, has secured a $1.7 million funding round, along with an expansion into 737 Boots UK stores nationwide, topping up the total of seed funding raised to $3.9 million.

Among the new investors is Arāya Ventures, founded by Managing Partner Rupa Popat and backed by British Business Investments (BBI). This is BBI’s first ever commitment to a solo GP. Alongside this, previous investors include Morgan Stanley, Exceptional Ventures, Atomico Angels, and angel groups out of Google and MIT.

Investment into Unfabled has been made from their Arāya Super Angel Fund, a community powered model. 67% of investments into Unfabled have come from female investors, compared to an industry average where just 14% of angel investors are women and only 15% of senior VC roles are held by women.

Samano says: “Women’s health has been sidelined for far too long. We’ve shown that when you truly listen to women, you don’t just create better products - you create a movement. Boots expanding our footprint by over 1000% proves that women’s health is no longer niche. We’re proud to be building a brand, a community, and a category that retailers and investors can no longer ignore.”

100,000...Grubhub is powering robot delivery at more than 40 US campuses nationwide. And in partnership with Avride, it has now completed over 100,000 autonomous deliveries at The Ohio State University's Columbus campus.

In a LinkedIn post, Avride said: "Our programme at OSU is the largest single site robot food delivery operation in the US, and it’s been amazing to see students embrace this innovative, convenient way to get their favourite meals on campus.”

“Here’s to 100,000 deliveries (and counting!) - and to continuing to shape the future of delivery together with Avride and The Ohio State University. Every day, over 100 robots bring orders from the restaurants right to students across OSU."

1...Gymshark opened its first permanent US location on 11th October, at the Roosevelt Field shopping centre in Garden City, New York.

This will be followed by a flagship on Bond Street in the NoHo area of Manhattan later this year.

The 4,000 sq ft plus Roosevelt Field store will act as the blueprint for Gymshark’s future stores in US malls and shopping centres.

Last year, Gymshark launched a pop-up on Wooster Street in SoHo. It also hosted an event, called Lift: NY, which pulled in more than 7,500 people to Pier 36 in Manhattan for a weekend of workouts.

£1.3 billion...Expanding the use of self-driving robots to deliver groceries, food or even prescriptions could inject billions of pounds into the UK economy, create hundreds of skilled jobs and help those living in so-called “delivery deserts”, according to a new report.

Starship Technologies serves customers in the UK in Milton Keynes, West Yorkshire, Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire and Greater Manchester. The company has committed to manufacturing a new fleet in the UK if the government acts to clarify regulation. Starship estimates it would need over 10,000 new robots to meet demand. 

The report, conducted by Prysm Global, found that the expansion of the fleet of small autonomous robots could unlock: Potential £1.3 billion GVA for the UK economy by 2035; 555 new high skilled jobs by 2035, and almost £11 million in cumulative wages; A boost of £125 million in grocery spending, with underserved “delivery deserts” seeing the greatest uplift; A productivity gain equivalent to 300,000 working hours saved, generating £140 million in additional impacts.

73...Wonder, a food delivery and technology startup founded in 2018 and fronted by former Walmart U.S. eCommerce executive, Marc Lore, has opened its 71st, 72nd and 73rd Stateside locations, making it a part of the Hackensack, NJ, Rittenhouse, PA, and Ridley, PA communities.

In a LinkedIn post, Mo Morrill, Vice President Operations at Wonder, said: "I get asked from time to time why I’m not in all the opening day photos. Truth is - I wish I had that travel superpower to be in three places at once! But these celebrations aren’t about me.”

“They’re about the probably 500+ incredible people who bring these openings to life - from site selection all the way to opening day. Each one of them deserves the spotlight, and I’m so glad they’re on our team. On to the next!"

158 and 420...Tesco has Whoosh, and now Morrisons has announced the launch of Morrisons Now, an on demand delivery service offering fresh food in as little as one hour. 

Shoppers living close to one of the participating stores can visit Morrisons.com or the retailer’s groceries app, select Morrisons Now, and order up to 30 items. The service is live now in 158 stores and will be available in 420 stores nationwide by the end of October. There is a delivery fee of £4.50 and a minimum order value of £15. 

They can track their order in real-time from store to door, which will be fulfilled by a Morrisons delivery partner on a courier bike or car.

Charlotte Exell, Group Online Director at Morrisons, says: “We are delighted to offer this service to our customers across the country, supporting them with fresh food delivered fast. We know that life is busy and Morrisons Now is here to make those everyday moments easier, delivering what you need, within as little as an hour.”

15...EE has opened a new Experience Local store in Elgin, northeast Scotland, following the closure earlier this year of the St Giles Centre, which left it and 14 other businesses looking for a new home.

The first of its kind tech hub in Scotland is returning to a permanent premises in the town’s high street, including an in-store pop-up designed to help traders displaced by the St Giles Centre closure.  

In January, 15 businesses had to abandon their outlets at short notice and, nine months on, only four have relocated. Many have been unable to afford the  cost of leasing new premises in the town and have become online only businesses.

EE initially opened a temporary mobile truck stationed in the town centre. And now the new Experience Local store invites people to get hands on with the latest connected tech launches and receive expert advice from EE Guides.

It is part of the company’s revamped retail strategy, which places innovation, personalised experiences and community initiatives at the core of its activity on the UK high street.