Including VusionGroup and Diebold Nixdorf: last week’s biggest retail technology plays at a glance

RTIH rounds up the stand out retail systems deals, launches, deployments and pilots from the past seven days. Including Amazon, Walmart, Shopify, Glovo, Oh Polly, Bo+Tee, Deliverect, ShopRite, VoCoVo, Tesco, InPost UK, Etsy, Nestlé, and Co-op.

Amazon

To mark International Women's Football Day and less than 50 days until the UEFA Women's Euro 2025, Amazon is kicking off a series of initiatives for fans.

This includes a refreshed online store, and a UEFA Women's Euro 2025 ticket giveaway. The storefront features thousands of products and offers fast delivery for Prime members on eligible products.

Walmart

Walmart has announced the opening of its largest centralised prescription processing facility to date in Frederick, Maryland. The 102,000 square foot site is designed to fulfill up to 100,000 prescriptions a day, supporting more than 700 stores across 16 states and Washington, D.C.

The US retail giant says that, with this launch, it continues to scale its Central Fill operations to meet growing demand for faster, more convenient pharmacy services including online shopping with fast delivery of prescriptions as well as pharmacist provided clinical services including immunisations and testing and treatment for strep throat, flu and Covid.

Two more facilities are in development - one in Phoenix, Arizona, and another in Republic, Missouri - and are expected to open in 2026.

Glovo

Glovo, a food delivery technology firm operating across Europe, Central Asia, and Africa, has partnered with finmid, an all in one infrastructure provider for financing, to bring instant, personalised capital offers to SMEs using the former's platform.

Through this tie up, now live in Spain, Portugal, and Poland, eligible merchants can access a cash advance from within the Glovo platform. They can use the funds to scale their business in whichever way they choose. Whether buying equipment, renovations, freeing up cash flow, investing in marketing etc. 

All verifications and credit checks are handled by finmid, via its platform integration, and are made using real-time transaction and business performance data. Merchants then receive funding in 24 hours.

Authentic Brands Group

Authentic Brands Group has announced a partnership with Reshop, a platform focused on refunds for consumers and merchants.

Reshop becomes the instant refund provider for brands within the Authentic portfolio, which will be introduced through a phased roll-out.

"Speed, convenience, and optionality are key factors for retailers to ensure success in today's landscape, and we're always looking for new ways to enhance the shopping experience for our customers. We're thrilled to partner with Reshop to continue to improve the overall post-purchase experience for shoppers, offering them greater flexibility through instant refunds," says Adam Kronengold, Chief Digital Officer at Authentic.

Co-op

The Co-operative Group (Co-op) has partnered with VusionGroup to replace paper labels with electronic shelf edge labels in its near 2,400 stores.

The tie up is pitched as the largest single retailer roll-out of electronic shelf edge labels in the UK and Ireland.

These can display vital allergen information, nutritional information, country of origin or whether an item is produced locally. They can also support improved inventory management, while eliminating the paper waste associated with traditional paper labels. The labels can also instantly communicate Co-op member price savings, deals and savings.

Nestlé

Nestlé has partnered with WHS Media to launch what is pitched as a first of its kind experiential retail media campaign promoting its Essentia Alkaline Water.

The campaign, which is targeting travellers at some of the USA’s busiest airports, includes immersive in-store experiences including full store takeovers at ten locations, a complete terminal takeover at New York City’s LaGuardia Airport Terminal E and an interactive basketball arcade experience, also inside LaGuardia Airport.

The three-week initiative kicked off on 8th May. Shoppers will engage with Nestlé Essentia branding through a variety of high impact touchpoints, including WHS Media’s in-store digital screen network, in-store audio, front-of-store pop-up displays, floor decals, and other creative placements throughout the stores.

Lowe's

Mirakl is partnering with Lowe’s Marketplace to help it offer a wider range of both premium and value products for every home project, supporting the retailer’s Total Home Strategy. 

MyLowe’s Rewards members earn points on all Marketplace purchases. All items are available for home delivery, and returns can be made at any of Lowe’s 1,700+ stores.

The marketplace launched in December. Since then, Lowe’s has expanded its offerings from third-party sellers including indoor and outdoor furniture, kitchen and bath, home décor, power and hand tools. This provides more options alongside Lowe’s product assortment available in-store and online, catering to the needs of both do-it-yourself homeowners and professional customers. 

Oh Polly and Bo+Tee

Oh Polly and Bo+Tee are tapping a Claimit platform that automates shipping courier claims.

Sam Robinson, Operations Support Manager at Oh Polly, says: "Claimit’s solution has significantly improved our accepted claim rates, even with an already robust internal process in place. Having a single platform to manage all claims has been a major advantage, eliminating the need to navigate multiple carrier portals and procedures"

Deliverect

FoodTech SaaS company and 2024 RTIH Innovation Awards winner, Deliverect, has announced the UK launch of Deliverect Kiosk, a self-service solution designed to streamline in-store operations and elevate the customer experience.

This launch, building on Deliverect’s acquisition of European kiosk specialist Tabesto in late 2024, marks an expansion of its omnichannel capabilities in the UK market, with the aim of helping restaurants meet growing demand for efficient, tech enabled service.

At peak times, restaurants saw queues disappear and ticket sizes soar 32%, within a few weeks of installing Deliverect Kiosk. Further, early customers noted a 17% reduction in average order time, while 50% of kiosk orders included an upsell and 38% contained at least one paid add-on, a combination that lifts revenue while reducing operational pressure.

Shopify

Shopify has unveiled its Summer '25 Edition, Horizons, the seventh showcase of its latest products and innovations.

This encompasses more than 150 product highlights across UX, Point of Sale (PoS), payments and AI (Sidekick), along with its centrepiece, the introduction of a new store design foundation, Horizon.

“In today’s climate where markets are becoming even more dynamic as a result of consumers' preferences, technologies and regulations constantly shifting, innovation in commerce is vital,” says Deann Evans, Managing Director, EMEA, at Shopify.

“To stay ahead and drive loyalty and sales, merchants need the right tools to be able to respond quickly and pivot if needed. Every edition lays the foundations to make Shopify even better for merchants and developers. This time, our brand new Horizons theme, built with and on AI, is just part of the over 150 product highlights we’re showcasing this time so merchants big or small who rely on us can work smarter, not harder.”

Olímpica S.A.

Olímpica S.A., a Colombian supermarket chain, has become the first retailer in Latin America to implement Toshiba Global Commerce Solutions' full ELERA Security Suite.

This enables it to prevent losses and improve store security through AI powered image recognition and behaviorial detection at self-checkout.

“Olímpica S.A. is revolutionising stores by partnering with Toshiba for state-of-the-art technology, expert consulting, and comprehensive support at every stage of implementation. This project complements our traditional checkout processes while maintaining the warm, personalised service that Olímpica S.A. is known for. With Toshiba’s self-checkout systems, we aim to enrich our customers’ shopping experience by offering modern and efficient payment alternatives, including cash, cards, or electronic methods like QR codes,” says Omar Villamil, IT Manager at Olímpica S.A.

“Additionally, we are rolling out this solution to more stores nationwide, reinforcing our innovation strategy to continue enhancing the customer experience without compromising service quality.”

Fair for You

Charity owned lender Fair for You has launched a new prepaid shopping card loan with retail partners including Argos, Iceland, Dunelm, Euronics, Tapi and Chemist Direct.

As the UK government sets out plans for buy now pay later regulation, it says that it hopes to help millions of Brits who can't get mainstream credit including BNPL or whose financial circumstance require greater flexibility and control than mainstream lenders provide.

It is allowing customers to apply for a credit limit of up to £350. Money is loaded onto a prepaid Mastercard that can be used as part or full payment online or in-store at partner retailers, and users can apply to top up once their balance is nearly paid off. Fair for You has plans to add more retailers to the scheme shortly.

ShopRite

VoCoVo has announced a roll-out of its Series 5 Pro Headsets - the firm’s voice communication technology - at select ShopRite stores in the New York tri-state area.

The headset is a fully integrated solution that connects retail team members, enhances customer interactions and syncs with other connected store technology.

Key features include telephony integration, allowing associates to make, receive and transfer customer calls directly from their headsets. Others include connectivity with curbside pick-up services, and self-checkout systems.

“Since successfully launching VoCoVo at our first stores late last year, we have continued to accelerate deployment of the technology across member store groups,” says Chris McCrae, Retail Innovation Lead at Wakefern Food Corp., the retailer owned supermarket cooperative and distribution and merchandising arm of ShopRite.

“ShopRite store teams report more seamless direct communication with the headsets. The feedback from our stores has been very positive, and we’re excited to add VoCoVo’s headsets to even more locations this year.”

Tesco and InPost UK

InPost UK reports the installation of its 1,000th Tesco locker location.

These provide shoppers with a way to collect, return, and send parcels while integrating into their shopping trips at both large Tesco stores (Extra, Superstore, Petrol) and Tesco convenience stores (Tesco Esso, Tesco Express).

The partnership has been live since 2021, with InPost and Tesco citing research that shows 66% of users combine their locker visit with a Tesco shop and 53% say they now visit Tesco more frequently because of the lockers.

Neil Kuschel, CEO at InPost UK, comments: “Reaching 1,000 lockers at Tesco is yet another major milestone in our mission to make parcel collection, returns, and sending as easy and seamless as possible. We’ve achieved rapid growth in the UK, expanding our range of innovative services and our locker network to reach even more consumers across the nation.”

“Our success and partnership with Tesco demonstrate that out-of-home delivery solutions like our lockers not only offer unmatched convenience for shoppers but also benefit retailers. We're proud to continue expanding our network with them and look forward to making everyday shopping trips even easier for millions of shoppers across the UK.”

A Tesco spokesperson says: “We are always looking for ways to enhance the shopping experience and make things easier and more convenient for our customers. With the installation of the 1,000th InPost Locker location, more Tesco customers can now benefit from the convenience of collecting, returning or sending parcels during their regular shopping trips, across the UK.”

Etsy

Etsy reports a new payment option for users in the US.

In a LInkedIn post, Brian Gallagher, Staff Product Manager at Etsy, said: "I’m delighted to share what I’ve been working on over the past few months. Instant bank payments are now available for US Etsy buyers. This new option allows shoppers to connect their bank account at checkout for a secure and streamlined purchasing experience - no card filling required."

He added: "Buyers now have: A fast, secure way to pay directly from their bank account; More choice with a card-free and cost-effective payment method. It’s been a pleasure to bring this to life with my fantastic teammates, in close partnership with the team at Stripe. More to come as we continue evolving how money moves on Etsy."

PDX Global

Digital payments specialist, PDX Global, reports that PDX Beam, its proprietary crypto to cash payments platform for consumers and merchants, now hosts and supports OFFICIAL TRUMP, the $TRUMP token.

The addition to the list of Beam hosted cryptocurrencies enables holders to purchase everyday goods and services from bricks and mortar or online merchants.

PDX Global claims that the gateway integrates with any Point of Sale system for a near instant crypto to cash conversion at a fraction of the cost charged by Visa and Mastercard, with no crypto exposure or risk whatsoever for merchants. Integration costs the merchant nothing, does not require any additional equipment, and does not disrupt other supported payment rails.

“There are more than 642,000 $TRUMP token holders whom merchants would like to serve,” says Shane Rodgers, CEO, PDX Global. “Token owners themselves can now use their holdings to purchase real-world goods and services rather than simply hanging on to these assets as a speculative investment. PDX Beam enables them to pay for goods and services with their tokens using their PDX Beam app - and no cards required.”

Talon.One

Talon.One is laying claim to being the only enterprise grade promotions and loyalty engine to be integrated into commerce platform provider Shopify as it becomes a Premier Tier partner.

Brands that use both Shopify Enterprise and Talon.One have a single point of access to over 30 incentives tools, including personalised, behaviour driven offers, gamified rewards, and loyalty programmes.

Christoph Gerber, CEO at Talon.One, comments: “Talon.One and Shopify Enterprise are a perfect match for ambitious, global brands looking to maximise revenue. With real-time, precision-driven incentives, brands can eliminate blanket discounts that erode margins and condition customers to wait for promotions.”

“Shopify merchants can now minimise discount dependency, enhance customer lifetime value and boost profitability. This partnership will deliver a best of both worlds solution: the fully flexible and scalable loyalty and promotional capabilities of Talon.One, with all the speed, versatility, and performance advantages of Shopify Enterprise.”

Deutsche Post

Deutsche Post has awarded Diebold Nixdorf a contract to renew the branch infrastructure in its approximately 13,000 locations across Germany.

This also includes the roll-out of new hardware systems for the branch counters and related services for at least five years.

Diebold Nixdorf will supply new hardware systems, consisting of the modular DN Series BEETLE M2110 PoS terminal. The company is also responsible for the installation of up to 500 systems per week, scheduled to begin in the third quarter of 2025. The subsequent services provided by Diebold Nixdorf include IMAC services (Install, Move, Add and Change), warranty processing, comprehensive reporting and services.