Pretzels, supplements, and makeup: RTIH presents last week’s biggest technology plays at a glance

RTIH rounds up the stand out retail technology deals, launches, deployments and pilots from the past seven days. Including DM, VusionGroup, Instacart, Louis Vuitton, The Quality Group, Goddiva, Nordstrom, Harmons, Simbe, EE, Tesco, and Nestlé.

DM

VusionGroup reports a new partnership with DM, a German drugstore retailer, to deploy its EdgeSense digital shelf platform. 

Powered by IoT, data, computer vision, and AI technologies, EdgeSense supports DM in streamlining processes, with the aim of reducing operational complexity, and improving efficiency and the customer experience over time.

DM store associates will benefit from simplified daily tasks, including faster and more accurate product identification during order fulfillment, thanks to the roll-out. By leveraging intuitive shelf indicators such as LED guidance (pick-to-light), they can complete routine operations in less time.

EdgeSense also provides associates with instant access to detailed product information through digital labels and mobile devices interactions. Approximately 70 stores are planned in the current roll-out phase, with around 20 stores live to date, and additional deployments scheduled.

Ben's Soft Pretzels

Ben's Soft Pretzels has partnered with Square to power its nationwide operations across the US.

With Square's all in one restaurant platform, Ben's says it has transformed its customer engagement and operational efficiency  - from loyalty programmes to back of house insights - giving its teams the tools needed to scale while maintaining the CX that started on an Amish homestead.

Founded in 2008 in Elkhart, Indiana, the company has grown from a single mall kiosk into a national presence with more than 185 locations across malls, Walmart stores, and sports venues nationwide.

After exploring various PoS solutions, the team turned to Square's ecosystem. Across its locations, Ben's Soft Pretzels taps Square's suite of commerce solutions, including Square for Franchises for multi-location management, Square Register for payments, Square Loyalty for customer engagement, Square Marketing for automated communications, Square Dashboard for workforce management and data analytics, and online ordering profiles for multi-channel ordering.

East of England Co-op

The East of England Co-op says it has invested over £600,000 in a project to replace all its existing self-checkouts (SCOs) across its Food store estate with new units from Trust Retail. 

The SCOs were piloted in the retailer’s Food store on Vernon Street in Ipswich, where, it says, the technology has already improved transaction efficiency and customer satisfaction.

The roll-out is being supported by software and IT company QCom and will standardise the East of England Co-op's self-checkout experience.

Beyond a more modern look and improved customer experience, Trust Retail’s SCO solution has the potential to improve the retailer’s shrinkage through in-built camera technology, as well as headset integration for colleagues and age verification technology, both to help reduce customer waiting times. 

REWE Group and Circus

Circus SE reports the launch of Fresh & Smart, a new REWE Region West segment, powered by Circus’ autonomous AI robotics system CA-1.

REWE Region West, the part of the REWE Group responsible for Western Germany, is among the global launch partners of the CA-1 Series 4.

The first Fresh & Smart location opens this week in Düsseldorf Heerdt, with the pair laying claim to the world’s first integration of AI powered autonomous cooking robotics inside a supermarket. Additional locations are in the works and under construction.

Customers are promised restaurant quality meals prepared live and on-demand by Circus’ CA-1 Series 4, the company’s first serially produced autonomous cooking robot. Main dishes are available from €6 and accessible to all customers in-store.

Kroger and Uber Eats

Uber Technologies and The Kroger Co. have announced an expanded relationship.

Beginning early 2026, customers can shop and schedule delivery from more than 2,600 stores across all Kroger banners including Ralphs, Fred Meyer, King Soopers, Smith’s, Fry’s, Harris Teeter, Mariano’s, and more directly through the Uber Eats app.

Kroger Boost members can get an extended free trial of Uber One for 6% cash back and automatic surge savings on rides, $0 delivery fees, and up to 10% off all Uber Eats orders. Uber One members will also be able to try an extended free trial of Boost, including 2X fuel points on all purchases and $0 delivery fee for orders placed on Kroger.com or in the retailer’s app.

Uber Eats’ restaurant selection will be integrated directly on the Kroger app, allowing customers to place their weekly grocery order and also order dinner from a local restaurant in said app. Kroger will be the first retailer where customers can access their favourite fresh food and exclusive Our Brands products alongside hundreds of thousands of restaurants, with $0 delivery fees and reduced service fees for all Boost members.

The companies will also collaborate to build retail media experiences for brands.

The Quality Group

The Quality Group, a specialist in sports nutrition and supplements, has announced a deployment of its order management solution (OMS) with Fluent Commerce on Amazon Web Services (AWS).  

Headquartered in Elmshorn, Germany, The Quality Group offers over 2,000 individual products in the health, weight loss and fitness sector through brands such as ESN and More Nutrition.

Its digital direct-to-consumer and social commerce business models have seen rapid growth, attracting investment from CVC Partners in 2022 to support and accelerate international expansion.

It sells high volumes of stock in short periods during flash sales, where 300,000 units can sell out in minutes. As a result, fast and accurate inventory availability is critical in peak periods to avoid overselling.

Before working with Fluent Commerce and AWS, its legacy systems often led to overselling and cancelled orders, system outages, inaccurate stock availability and a lack of real-time visibility. The team wanted a modern, central system to organise orders and distribute stock from multiple locations to multiple channels as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Instacart and Pet Supplies Plus

Instacart has announced a new partnership with Pet Supplies Plus to offer same-day delivery in as fast as an hour from over 700 stores across the US.

Instacart customers will also have access to 11,000+ products across 400 brands at exclusive loyalty member only pricing.

The tie up also includes over 20 Wag N’ Wash stores, a self-wash, grooming and natural pet food franchise that’s a sister brand of Pet Supplies Plus. With the launch, Instacart lays claim to being the only online marketplace to feature all five of the top US pet retailers. 

“We know the important role pets play in people’s lives, which is why we’re excited to expand our pet retail footprint and welcome the Pet Supplies Plus group to Instacart,” says Blake Wallace, Vice President of Retail Partnerships at Instacart.

“Customers can now shop for everyday pet essentials to favorite treats and toys, all at loyalty member pricing, and have them delivered with the same speed, ease, and neighbourhood feel they know and love from Pet Supplies Plus.”

EY and Just Around The Corner

Just Around The Corner has announced the launch of an autonomous store in conjunction with EY Portugal.

The company was launched by former Sensei executive Miguel Murta Cardoso with the aim of "simplifying your day by bringing the best of modern retail closer to you".

The Portugal-based startup specialises in autonomous mini-markets that are open 24/7 and situated in offices and condominiums, offering the likes of snacks, meals, milk and bread, frozen, fresh, drinks, hygiene and cleaning products.

In a LinkedIn post, Cardoso said: “The opening of this new store marks more than a point of convenience: it is an important step in our expansion strategy. With this opening, we prove that it is possible to scale the Corner model to new cities, and that our concept of autonomous and smart stores has the potential to go far beyond Lisbon... and even Portugal.”

He added: “We remain focused on making people's daily lives simpler and more practical, offering access to essential and healthy products, always just a few steps away. A special thank you to the EY team for their trust and for believing in our vision.”

Louis Vuitton

Perfect Corp. has announced a collaboration with Louis Vuitton, part of the LVMH group, for the debut of the Maison’s first full makeup collection branded La Beauté Louis Vuitton.

The tie up brings AI and AR powered experiences to consumers across 33 countries via web, mobile app, and WeChat in China, with virtual try-on (VTO) technology integrated at launch.

The makeup line includes eight eyeshadow palettes, 65 lipstick shades across three finishes - satin, matte, and balm - and 24 curated makeup looks. At the core of the digital experience is Perfect Corp.'s beauty tech suite, which has been customised to support Louis Vuitton’s approach to luxury beauty.

Nordstrom

Nordstrom has opted to extend its partnership with NuORDER by Lightspeed.

NuORDER will play a larger role in its end-to-end data and integration programme to enable Nordstrom to  improve its merchandise assortment and customer experience.

By creating a universal catalogue of product, category, sizing data, and imagery, NuORDER helps it  operate more efficiently at scale by reducing manual processes and accelerating buying cycles.

Today, NuORDER collects over 50 data points per item. As the retailer develops AI powered processes to get merchandise to customers more efficiently, it will increase data capture to support AI driven forecasting, product recommendations, and personalisation.

Harmons

Simbe reports deployment of Tally, its autonomous shelf-scanning robot, at Harmons, an independent grocer in Utah, USA.

Following a five store roll-out, Tally is now live across 17 of Harmons locations.

The robot captures real-time, shelf-level data on product availability, pricing and placement, with the aim of enabling Harmons to achieve cleaner data, better execution and minimise out of stock inventory.

“It’s not uncommon for associates to have been part of the Harmons’ grocer family for 20, 30, even 40 years, and we wanted to ensure we were introducing tech to fit their world,” says Bruce Hatch, Chief Information Officer at Harmons.

“Our goal for Tally was to empower and support our associates while also improving our operations and the customer experience. Simbe proved to be the perfect partner. Tally provides reliable, actionable data that helps our teams execute better, reduce missed sales opportunities, protect margin, and allow us to focus on what matters the most, our customers. It’s an essential part of how we continue evolving our business while staying true to our values.” 

The Quality Group

The Quality Group, which is home to the brands ESN and More Nutrition, has notched up a milestone involving Locus Robotics bots in its supply chain.

In a LinkedIn post, Denis Niezgoda, Chief Commercial Office, International at Locus Robotics, said: “350 bots are now fully live at The Quality Group - and ready for peak. What started just a few months ago with 40 bots in a temporary pallet pick zone handling has now scaled into the largest Locus Robotics fleet in Europe.”

He added: “We went live in under 90 days from signature. Now, less than eight months later, the site is running at full scale - across three connected halls with smooth coordination between pickers, bots, packaging, and conveyance. Targeting 60,000+ orders and over 300,000 units per day. Fully integrated with Ranpak (on-demand packaging) and Vanderlande (conveyance).”

“We had originally planned to hit this scale about a year from now. But TQG’s growth has been phenomenal, and the ramp up moved faster than anyone expected. This operation supports ESN and More Nutrition - two standout D2C brands in the fitness and health space. Fast growing, community driven, and constantly pushing boundaries.”

He concluded: “From a temporary zone to one of the most advanced fulfilment hubs in Europe - all in under eight months. Huge respect to the teams who made it happen.”

Royal Mail and UPP

Royal Mail and UPP are teaming up to introduce parcel lockers at 14 student residences across the UK. This is the first partnership between Royal Mail and a student accommodation provider.

The first locker is now up and running at Nottingham Trent University.

These feature label printing, with the aim of making the process more convenient for customers who do not have access to a printer. Customers need to pay for postage online and print the label by scanning a QR code at the locker or request a QR code if they are returning a purchase.

With long-term partnerships with 15 top UK universities, UPP has over 35,000 rooms for students under management or in construction.

Answear

Fashion e-commerce retailer Answear.com has rolled out Oracle Retail Merchandise Financial Planning and Oracle Retail AI Foundation.

With the automated platform, it says it will now have the tools and intelligence to better manage the complexities of its multi-brand, multi-country operations, adjust to the diverse fashion trends across markets, and support its international expansion.

Answear.com operates in 12 European markets with over 200,000 selected products and limited collections from over 700 high end global brands.

“Our rapid expansion into international markets, coupled with a growing assortment of brands and product groups, demanded a more sophisticated planning solution,” says Magdalena Dąbrowska, Board Member, Answear.com.

“Oracle’s Retail Cloud solutions provide the flexibility and scalability we need to optimise our planning processes, react quickly to customer trends, and ultimately deliver a better product offering to our customers.”

Sklum

Dassault Systèmes reports that its HomeByMe solutions are enabling the European online furniture and décor retailer Sklum to offer 3D shopping experiences.

Sklum has launched the HomeByMe Product Configurator on its website. Shoppers can customise sofas, wardrobes and bathrooms directly on the site, seeking ideas and inspiration from a wide range of options in terms of colours, fabrics, materials and sizes, and matching features to their individual preferences.

“Using a 3D web product configurator is attractive for consumers, and the lifelike 3D rendering enables us to better highlight the quality of our products. HomeByMe provides capabilities to generate interactivity and visibility while showcasing ready to purchase products. That helps us accelerate our e-commerce business by increasing our conversion rates and our average basket size, setting us apart in a competitive industry,” says Oana Matei, Chief Marketing Officer at Sklum.

Goddiva

Goddiva, a UK-based fashion e-commerce brand, has launched a shopping assistant called Goddiva Al.

Powered by OpenAl GPT-5 and LangChain technology, the aim is to enable customers to interact with the brand naturally, from "Show me a pink maxi under £100 for a wedding guest" to "Track my order."

The assistant understands intent, context, and tone to deliver instant results across product discovery, order support, and returns.

“We believe outfit discovery should feel personal, intuitive, and fun," says Mina Melikova, Chief Executive Officer at Goddiva. "Goddiva Al blends the empathy of a stylist with the intelligence of technology, guiding customers effortlessly from inspiration to checkout."

This is now fully integrated with the retailer’s website and order systems, offering the likes of real-time order tracking with courier updates and individualised discount prompts triggered by referral or browsing source.

“Our goal was to build intelligent empathy,” says Yathu Kanagaratnam, Head of Technology and AI Strategy at Goddiva. “Goddiva AI doesn’t just respond, it remembers, learns, and evolves with every interaction.”

EE

Throughout November, EE will be launching multilingual translation across all interactive screens in its stores, enabling customers to explore its full range of products and services in the language that suits them best.

In a LinkedIn post, Luke Walmsley, Head of Experience Design at EE, said: “We're combining technology and empathy to bring our brand purpose to life - ensuring every customer feels recognised and included. It also marks another step towards our ambition to become the UK's most personal, customer-focused brand on the high street.”

He added: “A huge thank you to the Discover EE team for leading the way - leveraging Al for good to deliver more inclusive and personal experiences. Coming to a store near you in November.”

Clearwater Mall

Clearwater Mall in South Africa has launched a sign language interpreting service.

In partnership with CONVO South Africa, the West Rand centre now offers instant access to qualified South African sign language interpreters by scanning QR codes located at information points and customer service desks throughout the mall.

“We’re here to serve our whole community, and that means responding by taking action when we can do better,” says Prianka Singh Rodgers, Marketing Manager at Clearwater Mall. “CONVO means that we are removing a communication barrier.”

There are no downloads, no registration, and no cost to customers. The service works across phones, tablets and laptops, and supports SASL alongside English, Afrikaans, isiXhosa, isiZulu and Sesotho.

Hawksmoor

Hawksmoor is deploying Sona’s workforce management solution.

“I’ve been a massive Hawksmoor fan since the Shoreditch, London site opened almost 20 years ago, so I’m incredibly excited that it has chosen to partner with us and roll-out our end-to-end WFM solution,” says Steffen Wulff Petersen, Co-founder and CEO at Sona.

“I’m really excited about partnering with Sona. It’s a smarter way of working that gives our teams better tools, clearer insight, and more space to focus on what makes Hawksmoor special,” says Louisa Richards, Restaurant Director at Hawksmoor.

SALESmanago

SALESmanago has announced the launch of a new AI powered Lifecycle Engagement Platform designed to address a major challenge for mid-market and e-commerce brands: fragmented customer journeys.

This connects marketing, sales, and customer service into a single ecosystem.

The move follows SALESmanago’s acquisitions of conversational marketing platform Leadoo and customer engagement firm Thulium.

“With this launch, we’re not just evolving our product, we’re defining and owning a new category,” says Michael McNeal, VP of Product at SALESmanago.

“From first touch to long-term loyalty, our Lifecycle Engagement Platform unifies tools marketers, sales, and service teams need into a single AI driven ecosystem. It’s the comprehensive solution for brands that want to drive maximum value from their customer interactions and provide exceptional customer experiences.”

Tesco

Tesco has launched a new feature for its customers on the UK grocery giant’s Scan as you Shop solution.

Here’s how it works: customers build an in-store shopping list on the Tesco app (find it on the in-store section). They head to the scanner wall and unlock their handset with a Clubcard in the Tesco app (no sign up required).

They then tap the List tab to see their shopping list and tick items off automatically as they scan. People can order it by aisle number and see stock levels for each item. The aim here is to help customers remember everything they came to buy and be more efficient with their route around the store, saving time and avoiding the frustration of forgetting that one thing they came in to get.

In a LinkedIn post, Nazma Ali, Head of Product at Tesco, said: “We have lots planned in this area so watch this space. Massive thanks to the brilliant teams across Product, Engineering, Data and Design, who helped bring this to life, and to all our list building customers for the feedback so far. Excited to see how our roadmap evolves in this part of the store shopping trip.”

Orlando Magic

Last week saw basketball team Orlando Magic open their season against the Miami Heat.

This marked the debut of 43 AI powered VisioLab frictionless self-checkout units in 12 food markets across its Kia Center arena, the company's largest major league deployment so far.

In a LinkedIn post, Tim Niekamp, Co-founder and CEO at VisioLab, said:

"With this and our Atlanta Falcons partnership with Wicket, bringing biometric face payments to NFL fans, fans can now find VisioLab: 2× in the NBA; 2× in the NFL; 3× in the NHL; 3× in the MLS; 10× in NCAA venues."

"The team is already working on a few more big announcements before the year ends, stay tuned. Grateful to our team, partners, and clients for making this possible."

Nestlé

Nestlé has completed the first part of an overhaul of its global digital core with what is pitched as the world's largest ever SAP upgrade to SAP S/4HANA Cloud Private edition.

It says that this will enable the deployment of AI at scale to achieve better insights as well as the automation and improvement of processes across the company's business operations.

It includes embedding SAP's AI copilot directly into Nestlé's core business systems to help employees access insights, automate routine tasks, and make faster, more informed decisions. This will help Nestlé better respond to changing consumer trends and retailer needs and improve efficiency in areas such as supply chain management, procurement, order fulfilment for retailers and investment prioritisation.  

Anna Manz, Nestlé CFO and responsible for Integrated Business Services, says: "Driving growth through innovation is a top priority. We are transforming our business to invest more boldly in the best opportunities. We need to combine great consumer insights and innovation with flexibility and scale, to provide great quality products to consumers around the world when, where and how they want them."

"This upgrade will help us build multi-year innovation pipelines, more agile production and digital first marketing and sales platforms for areas like cold coffee, therapeutic pet food and modern cooking aids."