Social successes and immersive commerce: RTIH presents February's coolest retail technology plays
RTIH Editor, Scott Thompson, brings you his stand out ‘future of retail’ systems deployments and launches from February, including Dassault Systèmes, Apple, Walmart, Co-op, AiFi, Lidl, TikTok Shop, Zara, Cleveron, Currys, Barron McCann, Coles Supermarkets, and Instacart.
Dassault Systèmes and Apple
Dassault Systèmes reports that 3D UNIV+RSES powered by the 3DEXPERIENCE platform will leverage spatial computing for virtual twins, with the new 3DLive visionOS app, available this summer.
The company has partnered with Apple to integrate Apple Vision Pro into the aforementioned platform.
With 3DLive, virtual twins created on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform will be able to leap off the screen and into a user’s physical space, enabling real-time visualisation and team collaboration in lifelike environments. Apple Vision Pro’s cameras, sensors and tracking also allow virtual twins to interact with the physical world around them in 3D UNIV+RSES.
“Our engineering collaboration with Apple represents a bold advance that reveals the power of 3D UNIV+RSES, where 3D is a universal language for a new world combining real and virtual,” says Elisa Prisner, Executive Vice President – Corporate Strategy & Platform Transformation, Dassault Systèmes.
“This is at the core of our next generation of representation of the world. The wide and growing adoption of the 3DEXPERIENCE platform by our clients makes this cooperation a unique value for our gigantic, highly diversified customer base, seeing the high potential of 3D UNIV+RSES to collaborate and train our next generation AI-based experiences on their own virtual twin data set.”
Co-op
UK convenience specialist Co-op has announced the launch of a new rapid delivery grocery app, Peckish, which, in what is claimed to be a grocery retail first, offers a service to independent retailers looking to serve their customers and communities online.
Peckish will enable small, often family owned, independent grocery businesses, shops and other co-operative retail societies to provide an online grocery shopping and delivery service to their local customers.
The app overcomes barriers that independent retailers face when moving to sell online, including cost, scale and resource, allowing smaller scale bricks and mortar retailers to have a presence online and enabling more consumers to quickly and conveniently shop local and support their high street stores.
Co-op is making an initial £1 million investment for year one on Peckish, following a 30 store trial last year, and is targeting a first year sign up of over 1,000 stores, with potential to treble that by year three.
Shoppers can use Peckish to choose their shop from the range of products the individual retailer has selected to put online. Retailers select the price - enabling them to match in-store prices and can choose whether to deliver the online orders themselves, or for it to be managed through Co-op’s order management system and delivered locally through its delivery partners including Just Eat and Uber Direct in as little as under 30 minutes.
Peckish will link with a retailer’s EPoS system, saving manual tasks such as pricing and stock control and management. Retailers who sign up will also receive a range of support including data, trends and insight from Co-op’s quick commerce team, Point of Sale material, window stickers, leaflets, shelf talkers, digital and social media assets, posters and banners.
Walmart
Walmart Unlimited, a new, gamified mini-series, made its debut this month, brought to you by Walmart, Unity and Spatial in collaboration with animators and producers Martian Blueberry and game development studio PIGIAMA KASAMA.
The first episode introduces characters inspired by Walmart’s real-life suppliers, including A Dozen Cousins founder Ibraheem Basir.
It’s the US retail giant’s latest attempt to tap immersive commerce - a form of online shopping that combines VR with 3D visualisations and gamification - to connect with the next generation of consumers.
Walmart has also been testing out Roblox and this month it announced its fifth No Boundaries drop on Zepeto, featuring ten new virtual items, inspired by the Spring No Boundaries collection.
As with previous drops, the real-world versions of these items are shoppable without leaving the Korean metaverse platform. Every purchase includes a free virtual twin of the item.
Marks and Spencer
M&S customers can now use its new Wine Finder tool powered by AI technology to help them select the right bottle of vino for their palate.
Available online for more than 500 stores and on Point of Sale marketing in 20 Foodhalls, this asks a few quick questions about personal preferences before offering tailored recommendations of wines ranged in the chosen store.
The retailer is trialling the tool to help customers shop a category that it says can be confusing. Research, conducted on behalf of M&S, found that nearly a quarter of shoppers spend more than ten minutes deliberating in the wine aisle.
The tool is supported by the M&S Food digital catalogue, which provides customers with live stock information across its more than 1,000 stores. Available through its app, millions of customers are using the digital catalogue to better plan their shop as M&S aims to become more of a shopping list retailer.
Customers can see what’s in stock at their local store and add items to a digital shopping list. The Wine Finder can access the catalogue to make personalised recommendations which are stocked in the relevant store for customers.
The technology is powered by Preferabli and it’s the first time it’s being integrated by a grocery retailer in the UK.
State Farm Arena
AiFi reports a collaboration with Verizon and the Atlanta Hawks to power the newly added Hawks Express Cashierless Checkout store at State Farm Arena.
Located on the 100 West main concourse, and operational beginning today, this uses AiFi’s computer vision led autonomous retail solution powered by spatial intelligence. The store also taps Verizon’s 5G Edge technology.
Customers enter the store, select their food and beverage items, and exit, with purchases automatically processed through their mobile payment method.
“Our collaboration with Verizon and the Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena showcases how autonomous retail and seamless entry solutions can transform stadium environments. By leveraging cutting-edge technology with spatial intelligence, we are enabling faster, frictionless transactions that redefine convenience for fans while optimizing venue operations,” says Steve Carlin, CEO at AiFi.
As part of a larger technology initiative, State Farm Arena has also installed Delta Fly-Through Lanes powered by Verizon at Gates 1, 2, 3, and 7 and deployed Verizon Sensor Insights in the arena’s technical hub.
"State Farm Arena is always exploring new digital solutions to enhance the experience for both our fans and staff," says Kim Rometo, Chief Technology & Innovations Officer at the Atlanta Hawks & State Farm Arena. “We are excited to see how the integration of Verizon 5G Edge and AiFi’s technology at the Hawks Express store will make an impact on checkout efficiency and customer satisfaction.”
Lidl
Lidl is claiming to be the first supermarket to sell through TikTok Shop. From 9am on Thursday, 20th February, 3,000 product bundles, said to be worth £30 each, will go on sale at the reduced price of £5 while stocks last, with all proceeds going to the NSPCC.
“Our high protein range is a firm fan favourite, with more than 150 high protein products sold in our stores every minute, and our customers across the country taking to social media to share their hauls each week,” says Lidl GB Marketing Director Joanna Gomer.
“With the number of TikTok shoppers growing rapidly, we’re proud to be the first supermarket meeting our customers directly on the platform with our unique offering, creating these exclusive bundles to showcase our new exciting products.”
Barron McCann
UK-based Barron McCann has created an innovation hub showcasing advanced technologies transforming the retail, stadium and hospitality sectors.
The company, which lists Pets at Home, Papa Johns and Iceland among its clients, has launched the facility in its Derby headquarters for customers and partners. It covers the likes of loss prevention and smart checkouts, hospitality Point of Sale solutions, colleague safety measures and sustainable initiatives like EV chargers. They are all designed to enhance customer experiences, boost operational efficiency and drive sustainability.
The hub also strengthens Barron McCann’s partnership with schools and universities by creating opportunities for students to learn and use the latest technologies. Companies being showcased include VoCoVo, 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards winners and specialists in wireless headset communication and WiFi solutions firm InCaptiv.
SML, which annually provides three billion radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to the retail sector, has a stand in the centre alongside Bizerba, specialists in hardware and software for the retail and logistics industries. The hub also features a working bar which is designed to showcase the technology delivered by Kappture, a software provider specialising in cloud-based EPoS and mobile payment systems.
From the smart retail solutions such as automated checkouts to the networking and infrastructure cabling, the space was built by the company’s in-house specialists. It also features the latest green technologies and promotes life cycle management and hardware recycling solutions.
Coles Supermarkets and Instacart
Australian retailer Coles Supermarkets reports the roll-out of Caper Carts, Instacart’s AI powered smart trolleys, at its Richmond Traders location in Melbourne.
Caper Carts are equipped with AI, cameras, and a built-in scale, which work together to automatically recognise items as they are added to the trolley. They enable customers to bag as they shop and watch their running total. At the end of their shopping, customers can checkout directly from the trolley.
Caper Carts sync to Coles’ Flybuys rewards programme. Customers can scan their Flybuys card or Coles app to instantly access personalised offers and view in-store specials on the trolley’s digital screen.
When they shop in-store, they can later view purchased items under their ‘buy it again’ list on the Coles app and website. Equipped with gamified capabilities, they also have the chance to win discounts by spinning a digital wheel on the trolley’s screen at checkout.
Coles is the first retailer in the APAC region to launch Caper Carts, and also the first in the country to introduce AI powered trolleys.
Zara
Zara is deploying Click & Collect robotics delivery, powered by Cleveron.
Customers can now pick up their orders from lockers in under ten seconds, from scanning the code to having the package in hand. The service offers 24/7 availability, no queues, and lays claim to higher customer satisfaction, due to it being faster, easier, and more efficient than previous offerings.
"Retail is evolving, and innovative solutions like this are shaping the future," says Fredrik Fenberg, Director of Business Development Nordic at Cleveron.
Laura Mercier
Laura Mercier has launched a luxury beauty shopping app for Apple Vision Pro, created in partnership with Obsess which was recently acquired by Infinite Reality.
This allows Apple Vision Pro users to shop and explore products by category, and also features shoppable videos and interactive, ultra-high definition 3D unboxing experiences. Inside the app, shoppers can explore Laura Mercier products while immersed in their choice of settings - a sophisticated New York boutique or a chic Parisian atelier.
The Content Hub inside the experience showcases high fidelity shoppable videos optimised for Apple Vision Pro. Visitors can watch expert tutorials featuring Laura Mercier's latest products, including the Caviar Stick Eye Shadow Shimmer, Tightline Eyeliner, and Extravagant Mascara, and purchase products directly within the app.
Currys
Currys recently hit 200,000 followers on TikTok, leading Niall McGarry, Founder at Fabric Social, to flag up "the work between our two teams that has been widely regarded as the biggest social media success story of recent times".
In a LinkedIn post, he said: "This is a true best in class example of a heritage business embracing the opportunity that consistently presents itself in the chaoticly disruptive era we now live through. A platform specific approach, adopting trends in their infancy, an inate understanding of the venacular of now, and nourishing not managing when it comes to community, have all been instrumental."
McGarry praised an initiative that has resulted in 100 million + organic views, millions of likes, comments and shares, and countless endorsement opinion pieces on LinkedIn, international TV and radio coverage, which have all, in part, contributed to the overall health of the Currys business.
HMN
Hologram Media Network (HMN) has launched what is pitched as the world’s first always on holographic advertising network, built in collaboration with Proto Hologram.
Featuring Proto Luma devices, this spans Simon malls across the US.
The network – which has thus far deployed across 30 Simon locations – including Los Angeles’ Del Amo Mall, New York’s Roosevelt Field Mall, Atlanta’s Lenox Square Mall, Nashville’s Opry Mills, and Chicago’s Woodfield Mall – offers limited advertising inventory, featuring 3D creative advertising programmed alongside exclusive IP content collaborations.
Each month's holographic show is curated with storytelling from major studios, creators, artists, and influencers, as well as live interactive hologram events with celebrities. The charter content showcase featured an exclusive experience for Paramount Pictures' Sonic the Hedgehog 3, immersing customers in a lifelike 3D encounter with the character and his team.
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