Waitrose sees double, Currys chases change: the week's biggest retail tech stories

It's Friday, the weekend is almost upon us, so let’s kick back and reflect on another eventful week for the retail technology space. Here's your briefing on the most important stories from the past few days, including SOLUM, TalkShopLIve, Trigo, Sensei, Primark, Jellyfish,The Sole Supplier, Ocula Technologies, Glory, Evri, and River Island.

1. Waitrose connects with SOLUM as grocery retailer rolls out electronic shelf labels nationwide

Waitrose and SOLUM have announced a partnership to deploy electronic shelf labels (ESL) across all the UK grocery retailer’s stores.

The roll-out, planned for completion in 2026, will reduce the time spent on manual ticket updates.

SOLUM says that its Newton Pro ESL was selected for its premium design, durability and quality, reliable performance, and suitability for the fast paced demands of food retail.

Mark Duckworth, Country Manager UK & Ireland at SOLUM, which was founded in 2015 as a spin-off from Samsung Electro-Mechanics, comments: “This milestone reflects the strength of SOLUM - not only in product quality and design, but in how closely we have aligned our goals with Waitrose throughout the process.”

“From the initial PoC, our teams worked side by side to support their ambitions and ensure the solution delivered meaningful value in store. We’re proud to contribute to the high standards Waitrose sets and see this as an important step in enabling further innovation across the sector.”

2. TalkShopLive announces appointment of former TikTok e-commerce leader Sandie Hawkins as its new CEO

TalkShopLive, a livestream commerce and shoppable video platform, has named Sandie Hawkins as Chief Executive Officer.

Hawkins recently oversaw TikTok’s US e-commerce business, where she helped steer product strategy, operational expansion, and revenue acceleration.

She also led the charge for the launch of TikTok Shop and the platform’s live shopping initiatives in North America, guiding market development and retailer adoption during the company’s early expansion into interactive commerce.

Previously, she led TikTok’s Global Business Solutions organisation in North America, managing advertising and monetisation across key sectors including retail, media, and consumer brands.

TalkShopLive Co-Founder Bryan Moore will transition from CEO to Executive Chairman, focusing on strategic partnerships across media, retail and talent.  

3. Aston Banks says farewell Aldi UK and takes on Digital Transformation Director position at Primark

Primark has appointed Aston Banks as Digital Transformation Director. He joins from Aldi UK where he spent just over 11 years and most recently served as International Director of Customer Experience.

In a LinkedIn post, he said: "I have just finished my first week in my new role as Digital Transformation Director at Primark. I have spent the week meeting my new colleagues in the international headquarters in Dublin, and have been blown away by the warm welcome."

"Primark has some exciting ambitions in digital and beyond and I'm thrilled to join the team and help in their digital journey."

He added: "I want to extend a huge thank you to everyone I worked with at Aldi UK. As with most jobs, the people you work with absolutely are the best part of the job and I've felt so lucky to have so consistently worked alongside amazing people."

"While I'm sad to be leaving, I'm excited about my new challenge (news on that in due course). If anyone is considering a career at Aldi I can thoroughly recommend it."

4. River Island taps Akeneo Product Cloud solution as it embarks upon digital transformation project

Fashion retailer River Island has selected Akeneo Product Cloud as its core PIM solution.

In a LinkedIn post, Andrew Simpson, Enterprise Account Executive at Akeneo, said: “We’re excited to partner with River Island, one of the UK’s leading fashion retail brands, as it embarks on a digital transformation project to modernise how it manages product data.”

“River Island came to us with a complex technology landscape. Multiple product masters, legacy workflows and a spreadsheet-based enrichment. By selecting Akeneo Product Cloud as the core PIM solution, it established one of the foundations for its e-commerce platform. Akeneo will serve as the central backbone powering structured product data and enabling efficient enrichment workflows.”

He concluded: “We look forward to supporting River Island through this transformation and driving smoother data operations, faster go to market, and powerful retail execution with product experience at the core.”

5. Currys enlists Jellyfish to upgrade website search visibility across traditional and AI platforms

Currys is partnering with digital marketing specialist, Jellyfish, as the electrical and technology retailer looks to make finding the right tech online easier for its customers.

The tie up will focus on upgrading Currys’ website search visibility across traditional and emerging AI powered platforms. Jellyfish will start by reviewing its current search performance, using its Share of Model tool, which looks at how visible ‘Currys’ is across search engines and emerging AI platforms.

It will then will launch a generative engine optimisation (GEO) programme. Jellyfish will also roll out its ‘One Search’ approach, which combines paid ads and organic listings. This will be supported by digital PR to further boost visibility.

“We know that customers are searching in more ways than ever before. We want to be there, showing up and being visible across all search platforms, whether that be the large language models like ChatGPT, Claude and Perplexity, or the well established search engines like Google and Bing. Making it super easy to find the right tech for customers is our key focus at Currys,” says Chris Holyland, Digital Director at Currys.

“That’s why we’re partnering with Jellyfish, to deliver stronger visibility wherever our customers choose to search and shop. It’s all part of our bid to embrace the changing landscape of generative engine optimisation and agentic commerce, and ultimately help everyone enjoy amazing technology. I’m excited to see the benefits our partnership will bring to our customers and Currys.”

6. Waitrose inks Glory deal with focus on retailer's back office cash management processes

Glory reports that Waitrose has selected the company’s CI-100X solution to streamline and improve its back office cash management process in its stores across the UK.

Glory is installing 285 CI-100X back office cash recycling devices in the UK grocery retailer’s stores with the roll-out now underway. 

Mark McCallum, Senior Vice President EMEA, Managing Director UK & Ireland at Glory, says:  “We are very much looking forward to working closely with Waitrose as we install our CI-100X devices across their back office UK store network. The CI-100X will also be fully integrated with our Flooid1 cash office software solution.” 

“Waitrose is one of the most well known and loved retailers in the UK and we are hugely excited to play a part in helping to support their continued success.”  

7. RTIH AI in Retail Awards Physical Stores category finalists announced including Trigo

We’re pleased to announce the shortlist for the RTIH AI in Retail Awards physical stores innovation category.

This award focuses on technology deployments enabling physical spaces to thrive via AI powered solutions, even as online shopping continues to grow. 

We were looking for examples of reducing friction in the customer journey, offering improved experiences, blurring the lines between channels, and boosting the way in which employees work.

Congratulations to all those who made it through the initial submission process. We received a huge number of impressive entries highlighting companies who not only recognise the potential of AI, but also make it usable in everyday work - resulting in more efficiency and innovation in all areas.

It’s now over to our judging panel who will decide the winners to be announced at the RTIH AI in Retail Awards Ceremony, taking place  at The Barbican in Central London on Thursday, 29th January.

This will kick off with a drinks reception in the stunning Conservatory, followed by a three course meal, and awards ceremony in the Garden Room, presided over by award winning comedian, actress and writer Lucy Porter.

To book your place at the RTIH AI in Retail Awards Ceremony, click here.

8. The Sole Supplier brings Ocula into the fold for product catalogue discoverability

The Sole Supplier has selected Ocula Technologies to power product catalogue discoverability.

In a LinkedIn post, Thomas McKenna, CEO at Ocula Technologies, said: “Managing a catalogue with this velocity of "new drops" requires more than just standard product copy and data - it requires enterprise grade content engineered for the new wave of search (Google SGE, Perplexity, ChatGPT etc.”

He added: “A huge thank you to Maya Traykova (Chief Product Officer) for bringing us into the fold and recognising the opportunity to automate high performance product content at scale. We are now working closely with Jamie Hyam (Product Manager) to deploy across the platform.”

Hyam commented: "Ensuring our community can effortlessly find the latest drops and shop our range has never been more important. Partnerships like Ocula help us remain AI enabled and agile in this area, ensuring our product data works as hard as our team does."

9. Dutch supermarket chain PLUS places Pricer ESLS order with 2026 start date

Dutch co-operative supermarket chain PLUS has signed an approximately 140 MSEK agreement with Pricer to upgrade 265 of the retailer’s stores with new electronic shelf labels (ESL). The roll-out is planned for 100 stores during 2026 and 165 during 2027.

Since an agreement was agreed in 2020, it has equipped 440 locations with Pricer’s solution based on the store operation platform Pricer Plaza and ESLs, with the aim of increasing the efficiency of several in-store processes, such as supporting in-store picking of online orders, as well as optimising the processes for inventory and stock management.

“This agreement is a testament to our collaborative partnership with PLUS. By transforming aisles into digital gateways, we are transcending the physical shelf to provide the transparency and choice shoppers demand, ensuring they always find exactly what they need, when they need it,” says Kajsa Blixth, Chief Commercial Officer at Pricer.

10. Evri announces recruitment drive as BBC Panorama goes undercover at parcel delivery firm

UK parcel delivery firm, Evri Group, has announced a recruitment drive of 2,500 roles nationwide in the wake of a merger with DHL eCommerce UK, and acquisitions of Coll-8 and UK Mail.

This comes amid parcel volumes increasing 12% to 425 million in its record half year results for the 26 weeks ended 30th August 2025. 

Martijn de Lange, CEO, Evri Group, says: “We continue to deliver phenomenal growth at Evri, and none more so than within our hard-working courier network, who are truly the backbone of our business.”

“At a time when many companies are reducing headcount and unemployment is growing, we’re proud to be creating thousands of opportunities and leading the way with initiatives like Evri Plus.”

Evri plans to hire the 2,500 roles across head office corporate functions, couriers, depot and hub roles, and Evri Premium roles. This follows the relaunch of its Evri Plus initiative earlier this year, which it says is backed by union and gives self-employed couriers access to benefits such as 28 days paid holiday, pension contributions, parental leave, and guaranteed national minimum wage.

BBC Panorama

BBC Panorama has gone undercover inside Evri to investigate what's going on behind the scenes at the company.

A documentary, titled Evri: Where's my Parcel, examines the pressures of working in one delivery unit, speaking to unhappy customers as well as couriers who say they struggle to make a living. Panorama notes that Evri disputes these claims and says it provides a fast, reliable and cost-effective delivery service. It also says its couriers earn more than the national minimum wage.

The programme was broadcast on 15th December and made available on BBC iPlayer shortly afterwards. Evri did not respond to our request for comment.