EE lands in Glasgow, Scotland: RTIH brings you this week's biggest retail technology stories

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 few days, including Tesco, Attabotics, Ikea, Kroger, DoorDash, Iceland, Stuart, Nobody's Child, Seven-Eleven Japan, and Asda.

1. Tesco keeps faith with Attabotics after warehouse automation firm is bought by Lafayette Engineering

Tesco is set to move ahead with a single store trial of Attabotics technology despite the Canadian firm recently collapsing into bankruptcy.

In early July, we reported on the spectacular rise and fall of Attabotics. Court filings show that the company recently entered into an asset purchase agreement with Lafayette Systems.

In a LinkedIn post, Brittain Ladd, a supply chain consultant and former Amazon executive, observed that the Court of King’s Bench of Alberta issued an approval and vesting order for 22nd September, authorising the sale of substantially all assets to Lafayette Systems and vesting title on closing.

“The sale price was not disclosed but is estimated to be around $20 million. When I broke the story that Attabotics was going out of business, I estimated the winning bid would be $30 million or more,” Ladd commented.

“LaFayette Engineering specialises in the design/installation of conveyor controls, high speed sortation, robotics integration, and warehouse automation software/services. They’re considered to be one of the best engineering and automation firms in the US,” he added.

Ladd continued: “Robert Robbins is the CEO and owner of LaFayette Engineering. Bruce Robbins is the President. Robert and Bruce Robbins are respected and highly capable executives. I’m very familiar with their accomplishments, and I have tremendous respect for both individuals and the company. I believe Attabotics is a great fit for LaFayette Engineering.”

There were six bidders vying to acquire Attabotics. The identities have been sealed.

2. Nearly 2,700 Kroger stores to launch on DoorDash this October as pair take tie up nationwide

DoorDash and Kroger have expanded their Stateside relationship to cover almost 2,700 of the latter’s stores. Beginning 1st October, customers will be able to shop Kroger’s full grocery assortment across banners like Mariano’s, Fred Meyer, Ralphs, and Harris Teeter, on DoorDash.

Along with fast delivery, they will get Kroger deals and loyalty programme discounts integrated into the DoorDash app.

“Customers are looking for more convenient ways to shop at their local Kroger store, and delivery is an increasingly important way they engage with us. We want to provide customers what they want, how they want it, without asking them to compromise on value,” says Yael Cosset, Executive Vice President and Chief Digital Officer at Kroger.

“Today marks another step in our journey to simplify customers’ lives. We are bringing our high quality, fresh, full grocery assortment to new customers. We are making it easier to shop in the way that best fits their day. And we are offering lower prices and more relevant offers to drive more traffic, which increases the data we use to power our retail media business.”

3. Seven-Eleven Japan and Telexistence prep roll-out of genAI powered humanoid robots in stores

Telexistence and Seven-Eleven Japan (SEJ) have entered into a partnership to jointly develop and introduce humanoid robots powered by generative AI. ‘Astra’ will be equipped with a Vision-Language-Action (VLA) foundation model, with deployment in Seven-Eleven stores targeted for 2029.

The aim here is to provide solutions to rising labour costs and workforce shortages. Robots will take on routine in-store operations, allowing employees to focus on services that only humans can deliver.

The initiative is in collaboration with the AI Robot Association (AIRoA) - whose leadership includes Professor Tetsuya Ogata (Waseda University), Professor Yutaka Matsuo (University of Tokyo), Toyota Motor Corporation, and TX.

TX operates a large scale data collection platform through its beverage restocking robot, Ghost. The tie up will see the integration of TX’s data collection platform with SEJ’s network of more than 20,000 stores.

4. Trigo co-founder Michael Gabay's new AI powered startup Gain emerges from stealth, bags seed funding

Gain, a startup providing AI employees for hire, has emerged from stealth, announcing a $12 million seed funding round led by The Garage. Other investors include BlueRed Partners and Bazan Group.

Gain, which was previously known as Velon and was launched by Michael Gabay, who co-founded and was President at autonomous stores specialist Trigo, has created an autonomous workforce layer that manages end-to-end procurement and operational workflows - from category and merchandising strategy, sourcing and negotiations to contract execution, transaction processing and exception management, all integrated with ERP, productivity, collaboration and procurement technologies.

“We’ve gained unique experience supporting customer and vendor facing agentic solutions that drive revenue, and we see Gain as a key standout in this space,” says Eyal Radler, Managing Partner at The Garage.

“Alongside its groundbreaking R&D work, Gain is disrupting the traditional SaaS pay-per-seat model with its pay-per-outcome approach to encourage early adoption. The team has a unique advantage in its unparalleled access to customers, which today is often the most significant moat.”

“In addition, they are creating proprietary data sets that further strengthen their position and build a durable long-term edge. We’re very excited to be working with the team and look forward to ushering in our new AI workforce.”

5. Tesco sees AI and automation technology investment pay off as UK grocery giant's first half sales rise

Tesco's first half sales were up 5.1% to £33.1 billion. Underlying operating profit increased 1.6% to £1.7 billion. And full year guidance was raised from £2.7-£3 billion to £2.9-£3.1 billion.

In releasing the results on Thursday morning, the UK grocery giant flagged up the opening of a new semi-automated fresh food distribution centre in Aylesford. It also inked an agreement to develop a new DC at DP World London Gateway, which it expects to open in 2029.

There has also been continued development of AI capability across the business, including improvements to in-house tools which find the most efficient journey for every Tesco lorry and delivery van, removing around 100,000 miles per week.

6. Iceland and Stuart claim industry first as they launch scheduled same day delivery service

Last mile solutions specialist Stuart has announced a new partnership with UK supermarket chain Iceland.

The pair are laying claim to a first of its kind same-day scheduled delivery offering in the UK grocery market.

Customers can visit Iceland stores, shop for their chosen products from the full range available in-store, and then schedule delivery within a two-hour time slot on the same day. Deliveries will utilise Stuart’s large transport type fleet to handle even the biggest grocery shops, ensuring that frozen and fresh items are delivered quickly and in good condition.

Following a trial in nine stores, Iceland will launch the service across an additional 120 sites UK wide. 

7. Ikea takes Manhattan and sees double as retailer preps new store in SoHo neighbourhood

Ingka Investments, the investment arm of Ingka Group, the largest Ikea retailer, reports the acquisition of a retail and office property at the intersection of Broadway and Spring Street in the USA for a second Ikea store in Manhattan.

This will see the existing retail property at 529 Broadway turn into a mixeduse building combining retail and office space. It follows last year’s investment in 570 Fifth Avenue.

The deal brings Ikea to the centre of SoHo, one of New York’s top retail destinations with over 12.2 million annual visitors. Ingka Investments will operate the entire building, comprising of five and half floors plus a lower level, totaling 53,000 square ft (4,924 sq m).

Built in 2016, it is one of very few newly constructed properties in SoHo, designed to complement its historic surroundings while offering modern retail and office spaces. The Ikea store will occupy the first and second floors, with the lower level used for storage and other back office facilities, covering approximately 25,000 sq ft (2,300 sq m). The upper four floors will be renovated for office use.

8. eCommerce Expo 2025 review: Nobody’s Child pushes past bottlenecks and hits one million orders on Shopify

Nobody’s Child has completed one million orders since its switch to Shopify earlier this year, the e-commerce platform announced at eCommerce Expo at Excel London last week.

Andrew Xeni, Founder and CEO at Nobody’s Child, told delegates it had taken the company two years to make the decision to switch platforms.

“The biggest thing for me was trying to remove the emotion from the decision,” he explained. “Loyalty is important, but business has to come first.”

The Chief Financial Officer calculated how much was being lost to doing things ad hoc, with “multifaceted bottlenecks” constraining the business. “Our tech wasn’t fit for purpose,” Xeni said.

9. Asda Chief Digital Officer Matt Kelleher leaves retailer after joining last year from Morrisons

Asda SVP, Chief Digital Officer Matt Kelleher has left after joining from Morrisons (where he served as Group Technology & Supply Chain Director) in July of last year.

Kelleher was a Morrisons veteran, having spent almost 12 years at the UK grocery retailer.

He led the establishment and scaling of the Morrisons.com online channel, and subsequently had responsibility for supply chain, IT and productivity as Group Chief Information Officer through the Covid-19 pandemic. 

He has also worked at Best Buy Europe and Carphone Warehouse.

At Asda, he headed up the final stages of the epic Project Future initiative. The departure is said to be amicable, with Kelleher leaving to pursue new opportunities.

Current CIO Marcus Shaw and CTO Adrian Berry will now share responsibility for Asda’s IT and systems teams.

10. First for EE in Scotland as it preps launch of Experience store in Glasgow's Braehead Shopping Centre

EE is opening the first of its Experience stores in Scotland, with a launch this week in Glasgow. The new store, situated in the city’s Braehead Shopping Centre, will see a guest appearance from former Scotland rugby captain John Barclay, who will cut the ribbon and welcome its first visitors. 

Glasgow is the fourth Experience store launch of 2025, following Merry Hill in the West Midlands, as well as Sheffield and Nottingham earlier this year. All of these are part of EE’s £3 million investment into bricks and mortar retail this year as it continues to roll-out the experiential format across the UK. 

The Glasgow store has been designed to help customers test out the best smart tech, while also providing support from EE’s in-store staff for those looking for help with their devices. It features Experience Zones themed around four key areas – Game, Work, Learn, and Home – along with a Tech Home area showcasing the future of connected living.