Can AI really teach us to shop like humans again?: presenting the retail technology week in numbers

Do you like numbers? Do you like retail systems news? Then this is the article for you. Including Tesco, Bloomreach, Instacart, Costco, Tastewise, M&S, Poundland, FreedomPay, Wonder, Walmart, JD Sports, and Believ.

£1...Struggling budget chain Poundland has been sold for £1 to US investment firm Gordon Brothers. It now faces a restructure, which could see up to 100 stores close. Poundland has 825 UK stores and around 16,000 staff and is facing steep competition from discount stores.

Susannah Streeter, Head of Money and Markets, Hargreaves Lansdown, says: “A collision of challenging trends has consigned Poundland to the bargain bin. It’s become a victim of the trolley wars taking place online and across towns and cities. It’s become much more competitive in the value sector of the market, just as its core customers, at the lower end of the income scale, have become more cautious, and disposable incomes are squeezed."

"It’s a problem its peer B&M European Value Retail has also been struggling with. Both Lidl and Aldi have extensive, rotating home ranges, and Sainsbury and Tesco are also hot competition. Temu and Shein are becoming formidable competitors, flogging cheap homewares, toys and presents with a huge social media presence."

"While groceries will always fill trolleys, the big supermarkets have a razor-sharp focus on keeping prices as low as possible, making the wares sold in Poundland less appealing as bargains. Added into the difficult mix are changes in shopping habits. With hybrid working sucking people out of towns and cities centres mid-week, there are fewer people to pop into buy little extras"

"Poundland still has pulling power among customers shopping on tight budgets, so is set to remain a presence on the retail landscape, but it seems inevitable that its UK store estate will shrink markedly. The new owners are likely to focus on locations with higher footfall, like retail parks and super central locations.’’

£16.4 billion...Tesco’s first quarter like-for-like sales rose 4.6% to £16.4 billion, excluding fuel. And its UK market share was up 0.44 percentage points to 28%.

Aarin Chiekrie, Equity Analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown, says: “Tesco continues to flex its muscles as the nation’s favourite grocer, delivering market share gains and increased customer satisfaction in an extremely competitive market. That’s helped like-for-like sales rise 4.6% in the first quarter to £16.4 billion, excluding fuel. A continued focus on value perception, production innovation and new products has all contributed to sales of its Finest range going from strength to strength, up 18%."

Earlier this year, headlines about Asda slashing prices to win back market share raised concerns of a looming price war in the grocery sector. But so far, those fears haven’t played out. Despite the worries, Asda still ranks as more expensive than Tesco and Aldi for 56% of core, high volume products.

And even if a price war breaks out, Tesco looks to be on solid footing with plenty of free cash flow pumping around the business. The British powerhouse is arguably the most competitive it’s been for many years, with the Aldo price match and Clubcard prices keeping its customers loyal.

Chiekrrie says: "Despite the strong start to the year, full year underlying operating profit guidance has been maintained at a range of £2.7-3. billion. That points to a slight decline from the £3.1 billion seen last year and looks a little conservative in the current environment, potentially leaving room for some positive surprises as the year progresses.”

60% and 93%...Bloomreach has released a new research report, How AI is Teaching Us To Shop Like Humans Again, which examines AI’s underlying impact on consumer shopping habits and expectations.

Comprising data from two surveys, each conducted with more than 1,000 consumers in the United States, this found the majority of respondents use some form of AI regularly, and nearly 60% have used it to help them shop online. 93% now consider conversational capabilities important.

"For so many years, we’ve been translating the context and emotion of what we were shopping for into keywords and clicks that our computers could understand. Now, conversational AI is allowing us to bring the humanity of that context and emotion back into our digital experiences,” says Raj De Datta, Co-founder and CEO, Bloomreach.

“When 97% of shoppers who have used AI shopping assistants find them helpful, and a majority say these tools help them find products faster…it's clear that shopping is changing for the better.”

$10 and $150...Instacart reports that, starting 30th June, Costco executive members in the US and Canada will receive a $10 monthly credit on an order of $150 or more. This can be used on same-day delivery orders on sameday.costco.com, sameday.costco.ca, or orders via Instacart.

Instacart enables delivery of Costco’s warehouse items to members’ doorsteps in as fast as an hour..

“Costco executive members expect exceptional value – and now, they can get even more delivered to their door,” says Daniel Danker, Chief Product Officer at Instacart. “Our new monthly credit makes it easier than ever for members across North America to get Costco’s warehouse items with the convenience of fast and reliable delivery through Instacart.”

The pair first partnered for same-day delivery in 2017 and later expanded the tie up to include Costco’s same-day delivery website powered by Instacart Storefront Pro in 2021. 

£10...Currys has boosted its Cash for Trash initiative, which aims to makes it easy for customers to recycle their unwanted tech. For the first time, anyone dropping off old electricals at any Currys UK store will receive at least a £10 voucher towards a £50 minimum spend - double the usual reward.

The offer runs from 11th June to 8th July, giving customers the chance to recycle any tech with a plug or battery, regardless of where it was originally purchased, and receive a £10 voucher.

This compares to the usual offer of at least £5 off a £25 minimum spend. Those with higher value items can still access trade-in deals, meaning they’ll receive either the trade-in value or the guaranteed £10 voucher.

Cash for Trash is a key part of Currys’ mission to give tech a longer life. Items collected are either repaired, refurbished, harvested for parts, or responsibly recycled. Underpinning this is its repair and recycling operation in Newark, Nottinghamshire - one of Europe’s largest tech repair centres.

$50 million...Tastewise, a platform for the food and beverage industry, has announced a $50 million Series B to scale its generative AI powered marketing and sales tools for global brands. The investment was led by TELUS Global Ventures, with participation from Duo Partners, Peakbridge, Disruptive AI, and PICO, bringing Tastewise’s total funding to date to $72 million.

 The firm says that it combines brand data with trillions of real-time food signals to automate marketing and sales execution across the F&B industry. From retail to foodservice, the platform integrates into daily workflows, turning data into sales materials, campaigns, and product placements on shelves and menus.

“F&B companies face a perfect storm - from margin pressure and competitive retail space to shifting consumer behavior and global volatility,” says Alon Chen, CEO and Co-founder at Tastewise. “The ability to change course quickly is everything. Our platform doesn’t just uncover what drives consumers - it helps brands act on that insight. This investment allows us to scale globally while continuing to empower our partners to stay agile, relevant, and ahead of change.”

£300 million...Marks and Spencer has contacted customers to inform them that it is beginning to take online orders again after pulling the plug in April following a cyber attack.

People are now able to buy a selection of its fashion products for home delivery in England, Scotland and Wales. More fashion, beauty and homeware products will be available in the coming days, with Click and Collect and delivery services to Northern Ireland resuming in the coming weeks.

As it released full year results for the 52 weeks ended 29th March 2025, M&S revealed it would lose an estimated £300 million as a result of the cyber attack that had forced it to not only halt online orders but also struggle to keep store shelves stocked. This was initially linked to a hacking collective known as Scattered Spider.

It then emerged that TCS was conducting an internal investigation over whether it was the gateway for the attack. The Indian IT giant has provided services to M&S for more than a decade. The retailer recently said that the hackers had managed to gain access to its systems via a third party.

They sent an abuse filled email directly to CEO Stuart Machin. The message, which was in broken English, was sent on 23rd April from the hacker group DragonForce using an employee email account.

"We have marched the ways from China all the way to the UK and have mercilessly raped your company and encrypted all the servers," the hackers wrote. "The dragon wants to speak to you so please head over to [our darknet website]."

£1.6 billion...A new study reveals the cost of payment system failures to UK retail and hospitality businesses, estimating losses of £1.6 billion annually.  

The research, conducted by FreedomPay and Dynatrace in partnership with Retail Economics, highlights the increasing frequency and impact of these disruptions on day to day trading, with consumers exhibiting low tolerance for delays. It also finds that one in five retail and hospitality businesses lack a secure digital backup when systems fail.

The study indicates that these failures are not isolated incidents but a recurring operational challenge that disrupts service, damages customer trust, and negatively impacts revenue. UK businesses are reporting an average of over five major outages each year, with 61% occurring during peak trading periods.

£300 million...Believ, a UK-based electric vehicle charge point operator, has secured a £300 million investment facility to install 30,000 new public EV charge points across the UK. 

The company says that retail and hospitality venues are ideal locations for this push, offering drivers the convenience of shopping or dining out while charging their vehicles.

Increased chargers in these locations will provide economic benefits for local businesses and will be influential in encouraging drivers to make the switch to EVs, it claims. Believ  will be partnering on this initiative with both public and private sector organisations.

Guy Bartlett, Believ CEO, says: “This recognises the scale of investment required and the urgency of the need. Confidence in EVs will continue to grow as drivers see more infrastructure going into the ground. We are very proud to be at the heart of this journey.” 

50 and 51...Wonder, a food delivery and technology startup founded in 2018 and fronted by former Walmart U.S. eCommerce executive, Marc Lore, has opened its 50th and 51st locations, a milestone, it claims, that no other restuarant company has reached in as fast a time.

"What this team has accomplished is truly unprecedented. To our GMs, managers, team members, and everyone behind the scenes: you are the heartbeat of Wonder. Your hard work, hustle, and commitment made this moment possible," says Jason Rusk, EVP Restaurant Operations at Wonder Group.

"And we’re not done - we’re on track to reach 90 locations by the end of the year. The unimaginable is becoming reality, thanks to this incredible team."

$18.4 million...Kargo, a specialist in industrial artificial intelligence (AI) technology, has announced an $18.4 million investment led by Matter Venture Partners, with participation from previous backers Sozo Ventures and Founders Fund, as well as existing customers and new strategic investors Lineage and Armada Supply Chain Solutions.

Kargo also reports the roll-out of its computer vision solution at 240 Armada dock doors to automate inventory management across the food supply chain provider’s network of warehouse hubs.

“Comprehensive, proprietary data is the key to unlocking the full potential of AI. Kargo has become the trusted provider of inventory data to leading global supply chains. AI plays a critical role in supply chain integrity and we’re helping customers across industries build their AI stack to connect their warehouses, back offices and customers,” says Sam Lurye, Founder and CEO at Kargo. “This capital investment enables Kargo to develop new products that connect supply chain data and rapidly expand our customer base.”

270, 400 and 104...JD Trafford Centre is now open, and it’s the retailer’s biggest ever store.

Opening weekend kicked off with exclusive giveaways, customisation labs, sneaker care services, and live brand activations from Nike, adidas Originals, Puma Group, Unlike Humans and Crep Protect.

The store features: over 270 digital screens; over 400 sq m of LED; a 104 metre long digital screen spanning across the bulkhead; a four metre digital swoosh.

5...Walmart reports the expansion of its drone delivery service. Now, millions of customers in Atlanta, Charlotte, Houston, Orlando and Tampa can receive their orders within minutes - making Walmart the first retailer to scale drone delivery across five US states: Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Texas.

“As we look ahead, drone delivery will remain a key part of our commitment to redefining retail. We’re pushing the boundaries of convenience to better serve our customers, making shopping faster and easier than ever before,” says Greg Cathey, Senior Vice President of Walmart U.S. Transformation and Innovation.

“This expansion of our drone delivery service marks a significant milestone in that journey. As the first retailer to scale drone delivery, Walmart is once again demonstrating its commitment to leveraging technology to enhance our delivery offerings with a focus on speed.”