Jysk brings unified commerce to UK&I and Ikea gets digital in China: last week’s biggest retail technology plays
RTIH rounds up the stand out retail technology deals, launches, deployments and pilots from the past seven days. Including Foot Locker, Morrisons, B&Q, Bluffworks, Frasers Group, Tesco Media, JULES, Footasylum, Fortenova Group, M&S, e.l.f. Cosmetics, and Ann Summers.
Foot Locker
Foot Locker has developed, in partnership with Stylitics, a new AI powered closet builder, Fits, within its mobile app. In a LinkedIn post, Michael Cera, Interim Head of Product Management and Design at Foot Locker, said: “AI is everywhere. But, at Foot Locker, we challenged ourselves to think about how to improve and make positive change to our customers shopping experience through the use of AI.”
He added: “We engaged with customers, really listened, and in partnership with Stylitics, developed a key new closet builder within the Foot Locker app - let me introduce you to Fits! Start with something you own. Discover personalised outfits built around it. See those looks come to life on a virtual model.”
Customers can upload or take a photo of something they own, discover complete outfits built around it, and visualise those looks on a virtual model. Paired with a cart addition from the model view, the aim is to make purchasing a whole outfit styled around your own products that much easier.
Cera concluded: “This was a collaborative effort across Experience Design, Product Management, E-comm, Brand, and Stylitics, and came to life exactly as we all set out to do. Download or open your Foot Locker app today and give it a try!”
B&Q
B&Q is ramping up its fast delivery push with the launch of TradePoint Express, a same-day delivery service exclusively for trade customers, in partnership with Gophr. The retailer has also expanded its Deliveroo partnership to more than 100 stores nationwide following a trial. Customers can now access up to more than 9,000 home improvement products through Deliveroo, with orders delivered in as little as 35 minutes.
The partnership with Gophr will allow Business Development Managers to arrange deliveries, either within two hours or for a pre-booked two-hour slot same-day, for TradePoint members from B&Q's standalone TradePoint store in Barking and 123 participating B&Q stores across the UK. The service is set to expand to all TradePoint stores later this year.
The launch builds on the introduction of Marketplace Click & Collect. Customers can now choose from an expanding range of collection and delivery options designed to suit planned projects, urgent repairs and last minute requirements.
Footasylum
THG Fulfil recently completed its first AutoStore implementation for an external retailer. Footasylum’s automated fulfilment operation is now live and delivering 212% of the output of the retailer’s previous operation, from fewer than half the picking stations.
Announced in June, the system processed its first customer order on 28th August and went fully live on 14th September. According to those involved, the build was delivered two months faster than the original project plan, with less than six months between contract signature and first order. A fleet of 85 AutoStore R5 robots operates across 96,000 bin locations, with 100% of Footasylum’s live SKU range stored in the grid and system uptime holding at 99.8%.
Before construction began, the two teams ran 80,000 simulations using Footasylum’s order history, seasonal demand curves and product data to determine the optimum number of robots and ports. At the heart of the live operation is THG Fulfil’s proprietary Warehouse Control System (WCS), developed over five years inside its own AutoStore network. Its in-house development team is refining the WCS after go-live, using live order data to improve bin sequencing, batching and stock positioning.
The project was delivered under a hybrid commercial model combining elements of capital investment and THG Fulfil’s robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) offering, structured specifically around Footasylum’s requirements.
Primepick
Primepick, a New York-based company that designs and manufactures robotic food kiosks, reports that it is expanding to new locations. The startup is bringing MealMate, an unattended kiosk that serves hot dishes in five to seven minutes, to a hospital and a nursing home in the Tri-State area, its fourth and fifth sites. Primepick is also preparing three new deployments in Huntsville, Chicago and Dallas.
These installations follow earlier ones at manufacturing sites in New Jersey and Connecticut and at Molloy University. For hospitals, manufacturing facilities and other round-the-clock environments, MealMate provides access to complete hot meals beyond traditional foodservice hours, without requiring an on-site kitchen or additional foodservice staff. At the aforementioned university, students order hot meals between classes and late into the evening, including dishes from local BBQ and Asian restaurants.
M&S
Klarna reports that it is now available as a payment option at Marks & Spencer for fashion, home and beauty purchases online. Shoppers on M&S.com and the UK retailer’s app can now tap Klarna and split the cost into three equal, interest free payments with, according to a press release, transparent terms and no revolving balance.
"People deserve flexibility without paying interest for it, so our goal is simple: meet them wherever they shop," says Klarna Head of UK, Ireland & Western & Southern Europe, Raji Behal. "M&S is a beloved British icon that brings second to none quality and value to millions of shoppers every day. We’re proud to now offer them a transparent way to spread the cost with no interest and a clear end date."
Katherine Carlson, Director of Financial Services at M&S, says: “We are always looking for ways to make it easier for our customers to shop with us. Customers shopping on M&S.com and through our app can now spread the cost in three interest free payments with Klarna, offering more flexibility in how they pay for the things they love.”
Orange
Pricer has been selected by Orange, a telecommunications operator in France, to digitalise its retail store network. The project encompasses 561 stores with an average size of 120 m² over the next two years.
The agreement covers the complete deployment of Pricer’s electronic shelf label (ESL) solution, including hardware, infrastructure, attachment solutions, installation, and cloud management via the Plaza platform under a long-term maintenance contract. It includes annual recurring SaaS and maintenance revenue. Orange chose Pricer following pilot programmes across multiple store locations.
Morrisons
Morrisons has selected Logile as it looks to enhance store workload planning across the UK grocery retailer’s business. The agreement covers its supermarket and convenience store estate alongside its logistics network.
Morrisons is implementing Logile software in a bid to simplify central planning, replacing time-consuming manual spreadsheets with optimised operational data and intelligence. By delivering clearer visibility into store workload requirements, it says that central operations can provide accurate, reliable insight across the estate, allowing teams to focus on better supporting store operations.
“Getting colleagues where customers need them most is the heart of what we do, and at our scale you need a reliable, shared foundation to get that right,” says Alex Rose, Head of Productivity at Morrisons. “A large supermarket and a local convenience store operate differently so our planning has to flex to those local needs while keeping central support consistent. When our store managers have plans they can depend on, they spend less time managing admin and more time supporting their colleagues and serving customers.”
Bluffworks
Travel apparel brand, Bluffworks, has selected Cart.com as its exclusive US fulfilment partner. Its inventory and fulfillment operations are now centralised at Cart.com’s Terrell, Texas facility. Bluffworks expects the new operation to lower its fulfilment costs by at least 20%.
"I've spent my career on both sides of logistics, first building supply chain systems as a software developer and then relying on them to run a brand," says Stefan Loble, Founder and CEO at Bluffworks. "I am still stunned at how different the accuracy, cost and level of service can be between two large, similar looking fulfilment providers.”
“Cart.com has their operation buttoned up, especially their technology. I can open their software and see the status of the whole operation without emailing anyone to ask. When something goes wrong, like a shipment turning up damaged, which happens in this business, you find out fast whether you’re in good hands on the other end. With Cart.com we are."
Ann Summers
InPost has partnered with Ann Summers with the retailer’s customers now able to choose 48-hour delivery to an InPost parcel locker at checkout, select a location and collect at a time that suits them. They will also be able to make returns through InPost’s network of over 16,000 lockers.
Jon Nicholson, Chief Commercial Officer, InPost UK, comments: “Ann Summers has spent decades disrupting the high street and empowering its customers, while InPost is challenging the way delivery has traditionally worked. Bringing those two mindsets together makes this a really exciting partnership. Customers expect choice throughout the shopping journey, and delivery should be no different.”
“By adding InPost locker delivery, Ann Summers is giving its customers greater freedom to choose the location and collection time that works best for them. For retailers, delivery is an increasingly important part of the overall customer experience. Giving people more options at checkout creates a more flexible, modern shopping journey, and that is exactly where InPost continues to push the category forward.”
Maria Hollins, CEO, Ann Summers, says: “For more than 50 years, we have pushed boundaries and championed empowerment, confidence and choice for our customers. Our partnership with InPost brings that same approach into another part of the shopping journey, giving our customers even greater freedom over how and where they receive their orders. We want every interaction with us to feel empowering and on our customers’ terms. InPost locker delivery gives them another simple and flexible option, putting even more choice into their hands.”
Fortenova Group
Hanshow, a Chinese specialist in digital store solutions, has partnered with Kenty Adria, a member of Fortenova Group, to support the large scale roll-out of electronic shelf labels (ESL) across Konzum and Mercator stores in Croatia and Slovenia. Building on pilot projects, the deployment forms part of the broader digital transformation of Fortenova Group's retail network.
At Konzum, electronic pricing has been introduced in more than 200 stores, with a further 260 stores planned for deployment. The largest implementation to date includes 44,000 electronic shelf labels installed at Konzum’s store on Radnička Street in Zagreb. The majority of its retail network, comprising more than 600 stores across Croatia, is expected to be equipped by the end of the 2027 summer season.
At Mercator, electronic shelf labels have so far been installed in 50 stores across Slovenia, with the goal of deploying ESL solutions throughout the entire Mercator retail network by the end of 2027. Across the network, the full roll-out is estimated to require approximately 3.1 million ESLs.
e.l.f. Cosmetics
e.l.f. Cosmetics, which is part of e.l.f. Beauty, has landed on ZEPETO, an avatar-based social metaverse platform. It has launched Express your e.l.f. where players can discover the beauty trends shaping culture and turn them into complete virtual looks from head to toe.
“As a different kind of company, e.l.f. does not see boundaries between where beauty lives and where culture happens. From Twitch to Roblox and now ZEPETO, we meet our community where they like to play and give them a platform to fuel discovery, empowerment and self-expression. Every immersive experience we build is an extension of the same vision that drives everything we do: disrupt norms, shape culture and connect communities through positivity, inclusivity and accessibility,” says Patrick O’Keefe, Chief Integrated Marketing Officer, e.l.f. Brands.
ZEPETO players can now dress their avatars in e.l.f. designed digital looks with makeup from the brand’s Power Grip family and hairstyles, bags, jewellery and special effects items inspired by Power Grip’s colours and textures. Players can also show off their e.l.f. looks by snapping photos and videos against custom backgrounds and sharing them to the ZEPETO feed.
“By seamlessly blending e.l.f. Cosmetics’ iconic products with the year’s most defining trends, ZEPETO is making it possible to reimagine makeup as a comprehensive head to toe virtual styling. We are thrilled to pioneer these full looks designed by e.l.f., delivering a revolutionary brand experience that pushes the boundaries of virtual self-expression,” says Annette Lee, Head of Business Development, ZEPETO.
Ikea
Ingka Group has launched an Ikea Douyin official flagship store in China. The new digital touchpoint will offer more than 6,500 Ikea products across 179 categories, with delivery available in 301 cities across China.
The move brings the retailer in to the short-form video and content commerce platform (a sister platform to TikTok under ByteDance). The store will complement its existing stores, website, app, WeChat and other e-commerce channels in China.
Lydia Song, Ikea China Acting CEO and President and CSO, says: “People in China are increasingly moving between inspiration, discovery and shopping in ways that are highly connected and increasingly digital. Douyin E-commerce gives us an opportunity to meet people in a new context, learn what resonates with them and make Ikea more accessible to more people. This is not simply about adding another sales channel. It is about understanding how we can become part of people’s everyday lives in new and relevant ways.”
Parag Parekh, Chief Digital Officer at Ikea Retail, comments: “Retail is increasingly about being present wherever and whenever people want to meet us, while making those experiences feel like one connected Ikea. What is particularly interesting about new platforms like Douyin E-commerce is the opportunity to learn. They help us understand how inspiration, interaction and commerce are coming closer together, and what that could mean for how we continue to develop the Ikea omnichannel experience.”
Jysk
Danish home furnishing retailer Jysk reports that the first of its UK and Ireland stores are now live with its Enactor powered unified commerce platform. In a LinkedIn post, Patrick Gretsch, Retail Operations Expert at Jysk, said: "Two more countries have taken their first steps towards a new way of working, with the first stores in the UK and Ireland now successfully running on our unified commerce platform."
"I had the pleasure of joining the team at our Sallynoggin store in Ireland to experience one of these first transitions firsthand. What stood out was the excellent preparation and collaboration across all departments involved. The result? A smooth and efficient changeover, completed while the store remained open and continued serving customers."
He added: "And this is just the beginning. The roll-out is progressing at pace, with all Jysk stores in both countries expected to be running on the new platform by mid-November. So, what does this mean for our colleagues and customers? For our store teams, unified commerce means simpler processes and new opportunities to serve customers directly on the shop floor. With mobile PoS, colleagues can process payments right where the customer interaction takes place, making the shopping experience more convenient and personal."
"For our customers, it opens the door to additional services. They can, for example, order products in a store and have them delivered directly coming from our warehouse straight to their doorstep. This is what makes unified commerce so exciting: it’s not just about introducing a new platform. It’s about improving the way we work and creating new opportunities to serve our customers."
Frasers Group
Frasers Group, whose brands include Sports Direct, House of Fraser, and Flannels, reports that Antrim in Northern Ireland has become the first of its warehouses to go live with a Microsoft Dynamics 365 warehouse management system (WMS).
In a LinkedIn post, Jakob Vestergaard, Product Manager - Warehouse at Frasers Group, said: "Two years of work. One major milestone. We're live. As the first warehouse in the group to adopt D365 WMS, Antrim marks an important milestone in our wider warehouse transformation journey."
"Over the last few years, Frasers Group has invested heavily in elevating our stores. This programme is about taking the next step by elevating the warehouse operations that power them, creating a more scalable, visible and consistent platform to support our stores, brands and customers. This achievement would not have been possible without the dedication of teams across the business and our partners."
He concluded: "Go live is a major achievement, but it isn't the end of the story. Over the coming months we'll continue working with our warehouse teams, Microsoft, Binary and InterRadish to refine the solution, introduce additional capabilities and build out the global warehouse template that will support future warehouse deployments across Frasers Group. This is the first step in a much bigger journey. Looking forward to what comes next."
Tesco Media
Tesco Media has unveiled a series of new capabilities designed to help brands turn deeper customer understanding into more helpful media experiences, more connected shopping journeys and clearer proof of growth. These were announced at its 2026 Upfront event.
Key here is Ad Manager, a new client facing platform designed to make planning, booking, measuring and optimising media simpler, more connected and more useful for brands. The self-service platform gives advertisers greater control and transparency over how they work with Tesco Media, while helping them turn customer insight into action with less complexity.
Tesco Media Ad Manager currently delivers Sponsored Products and will expand shortly into Display and Video as Tesco Media builds towards a more unified experience across its media ecosystem. Over time, AI powered workflows and recommendations will help advertisers reduce manual tasks, uncover new opportunities and make faster optimisation decisions, while greater interoperability will allow agencies and brands to connect the platform with the tools they already use.
The aim is to make control feel enabling rather than burdensome, giving brands simpler ways to create media that is timely, relevant and genuinely helpful to customers. The infrastructure behind Ad Manager is powered by Kevel, a specialist provider of API first ad technology for retailers and commerce media networks and designed to help Tesco Media deliver a seamless advertising experience across its digital channels.
JULES
JULES, a French menswear retailer with over 350 stores across France and owned by Association Familiale Mulliez, has selected Ekinops solutions as it looks to modernise web security and better support its evolving digital usage.
Based in Roubaix and employing 2,800 people, JULES was looking for a replacement solution capable of providing greater visibility into internet usage, making filtering policies easier to manage and strengthening employee protection against web-based risks, without compromising user experience.
It says it selected Ekinops’ solution for its performance, ease of integration into the existing information system, its ability to facilitate the migration of filtering rules, the quality of website categorisation and the availability of clear dashboards enabling more effective monitoring of usage, blocks and risks. Ekinops’ positioning as a French software provider was also an important criterion, in line with requirements for sovereignty, proximity, GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) compliance and trust in data management.
Morrisons
Just Eat is expanding its autonomous delivery robot trial with Starship Technologies to Cambourne in Cambridgeshire. This is the first trial location where it doesn't already offer grocery delivery and builds on Sunderland and Milton Keynes deployments.
Morrisons has become one of the first grocery brands to tap the technology, with benefits including adding delivery capacity in the run up to the festive season and during offers such as the regular 'Half Price Wednesdays' on Just Eat. The Cambourne supermarket which is now live is the fourth Morrisons to begin autonomous robot deliveries with three Morrisons Dailys live across Sunderland and Milton Keynes.
THG Commerce
THG Commerce, part of THG Ingenuity, has integrated Criteo Sponsored Products into its AI Shopping Assistant, built using Google Cloud’s Gemini Enterprise. THG Commerce says it is the first commerce technology provider in Europe to bring Criteo Sponsored Products into AI powered conversational search, opening up a new retail media opportunity for retailers and brands.
Retailers can now monetise customer conversations through relevant sponsored product placements. The integration places sponsored and organic product recommendations side by side within the same conversation. Brands can reach shoppers in AI driven discovery moments, when intent is high and recommendations are shaped by the shopper's own words. Early results show sponsored products surfaced through the AI Shopping Assistant reached a click-through rate more than five times the average, and a conversion rate more than double the average.
The AI Shopping Assistant draws keywords and filters from each conversation and turns them into tailored product recommendations. When a Criteo Sponsored Product is eligible and relevant, it appears clearly labelled within the assistant's response alongside organic recommendations, adding to the discovery experience rather than interrupting it.
The same relevance models that power Criteo search advertising, including keyword matching, semantic understanding and strict relevance thresholds, apply in the conversational context. Sponsored recommendations appear only when they match what the shopper has asked for.
The integration builds on THG Ingenuity’s broader partnership with Criteo and on its wider collaboration with Google Cloud. THG Commerce has developed a suite of agentic commerce solutions built on Gemini Enterprise. Alongside the AI Shopping Assistant, these include the AI Stylist, which offers AI powered virtual try-on for beauty, apparel and footwear, and Shopping Assistant Insights, which is available in Gemini Enterprise and helps retailers understand what their shoppers want and how the assistant is serving them. Each is delivered as a plug and play SaaS service, available through Google Cloud Marketplace and able to operate independently of the underlying storefront.
