RTIH Innovation Awards back for more in 2026: this week's biggest retail technology stories

It's Friday, the weekend is almost upon us, so let’s kick back and reflect on another eventful week for the retail tech space. Here's your briefing on the most important stories from the past few days, including Heineken, Lidl Ireland, Maple Group, Gander, MediaMarktSaturn, Nuvei, Gap, Profitmind, NCR Voyix, and 7‑Eleven Philippines.

1. Heineken raids Mars to brings in Romain Apert as company's new Chief Digital and Technology Officer

Heineken has appointed Romain Apert as Chief Digital & Technology Officer, and member of the executive team. Apert, currently Chief Information Officer Petcare at Mars, will succeed Ronald den Elzen, who is departing after a 31 year run with the company.

Dolf van den Brink, Chairman of the Executive Board/CEO, comments:  “I am delighted to welcome Romain to the family. He joins us with deep international experience leading large scale digital transformation, data and technology strategy, and complex change across global businesses.”

“Romain will be partnering across the executive team, advancing our EverGreen 2030 strategy through the further deployment of the company’s digital backbone, and scaling value from data and AI. He is known for combining operational rigour with practical innovation and a people centred leadership style, and is an excellent fit with the Heineken culture”.

Van den Brink adds: “Ronald retires after an extraordinary 31-year career across five countries in Europe and the Americas and across six distinct functions. His contributions to our success in the past three decades through his deep knowledge of the company and portfolio, his passion and incredible people skills, will be greatly missed. I wish Ronald all the best in his future endeavours.”

2. 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards opens for entries with deadline for submissions Friday, 11th September

The eighth edition of the RTIH Innovation Awards is now open for entries. The awards celebrate global tech innovation in a fast moving omnichannel world.

Our latest winners were revealed at the 2025 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London on Thursday, 16th October.

Key dates for 2026

Friday, 20th February: Awards open for entries

Friday, 11th September: Award entry deadline 

Tuesday, 15th September: 2026 finalists revealed

Wednesday, 16th September - Wednesday, 30th September: Judging days

Thursday, 15th October: Winners announced at the 2026 RTIH Innovation Awards Ceremony, taking place at The HAC in Central London

3. Self-checkout technology milestone for Lidl Ireland as food retailer's 100th store goes live

Lidl Ireland is celebrating a self-checkout technology milestone. In a LinkedIn post, it said: “We are thrilled to announce a major milestone in our mission to provide the best shopping experience in Ireland: our 100th store (Lidl Fonthill) has officially gone live with self-checkout (SCO) technology.”

It added: “We’re investing €10.7 million to modernise how you shop. But this isn't just about new screens - it's about giving you time back. Our data shows that using SCO is 55% faster, and since rolling them out, customer satisfaction has jumped by 9%.”

It is also investing €2.7 million to upgrade traditional manual tills. New till furniture featuring extended belts and dual packing areas is being rolled out across the country. These provide customers with more space to pack their groceries comfortably, while allowing store assistants to begin serving the next customer immediately.

Lidl Ireland concluded: “A huge shoutout to our project and store teams for making this rapid roll-out possible while continuing to deliver the best service for our customers.”

The retailer made its debut in the Irish grocery market in 2000, and now has over 5,000 colleagues across 190 sites in Ireland and Northern Ireland.

4. JD Sports inks multi-year global ItemOptix RFID technology deal with Checkpoint Systems

Checkpoint Systems has signed a multi‑year global agreement with JD Sports Fashion to deploy its ItemOptix RFID inventory management software across the retailer’s Sports Fashion Group stores, starting in Europe.

The tie up began with a pilot in the second half of 2024 in the UK, France and Spain across five stores and has scaled into a full SaaS roll-out. The initial phase will see more than 400 stores go live by the end of the year in the UK and Ireland, with the deployment expanding across Europe to reach nearly 1,000 stores by the end of 2026.

In parallel, Checkpoint’s DC tunnel solutions are now operational in JD Sports’ UK distribution centre, with installation at the Netherlands DC scheduled imminently.

Dan McGrath, JD Group Head of Customer Operations, says, “We are very excited to take our partnership with Checkpoint to the next level over the coming months and years ahead, and we thank them for their support and for everyone’s efforts to date as we start our RFID journey.”

“We are forming a partnership to span many years, and that needs to start on the right footing, and I firmly believe we have created that between us. Both sides have worked tirelessly and in very short timelines to get us to where we are today.”

5. Maple Group notches up a first in Republic of Ireland as it reduces food waste with Gander

Irish retail group Maple Group has become the first in the Republic of Ireland to use AI powered technology from Gander across its estate to tackle food waste.

It piloted the integration in January 2025, going live simultaneously across all seven stores in Donegal. And it has now committed to a full contract until the end of 2026.

Through integration with its Station Master EPoS, back office and handheld systems, reduced price products are instantly visible to shoppers via Gander in real-time. During the pilot, Maple Group increased its sell-through rate of reduced products from 30% in March to 57% by October, saving almost 60% of reduced-to-clear food from going to waste.

The initiative has also helped the group recover an additional €13,000 in 2025 while keeping perfectly good food in the food chain.

“This pilot has been transformative for our business,” says Arthur McMahon, Managing Director at Maple Group. “From a purely operational perspective, we have further reduced food waste across all seven stores by more than 27 per cent, while the recovery of value has exceeded €13,000 in less than ten months. 

“The integration of AI technology has allowed us to optimise stock visibility and drive measurable improvements in efficiency, all without impacting our daily store operations. These results confirm that sustainability and commercial performance can go hand in hand, and we are proud to be leading the way in Ireland.”

6. Gap reboots its loyalty programme as Encore goes live in Stateside both online and in stores

Gap has launched a new membership programme, Encore, running across its Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic and Athleta brands.

With nearly 40 million active members, this is now live in the US, with enrolment available online and in stores.

Members can unlock: Early access to select products and exclusive drops; Members only cultural moments and partner offerings; Curated behind the scenes content. They can also donate rewards to select charitable organisations.

“Fashion is entertainment, and today’s customers aren’t just buying apparel, they’re buying into brands that shape culture and tell compelling stories,” says Richard Dickson, President and Chief Executive Officer at Gap.

“Encore connects our brands and partnerships in new ways to meet that demand and change how customers engage with our brands. By bringing fashion, entertainment and access together, we are building momentum, deepening relationships and creating long-term value across our portfolio.”

“Encore is a powerful new tool to bring our Fashiontainment platform to life,” says Pam Kaufman, Chief Entertainment Officer at Gap. “Through partners like Disney, NBCUniversal and AMC Theatres, we can translate what people love on screens and stages into experiences they can actually access - from early drops and exclusives to cultural moments you can’t get anywhere else. It’s a new way to participate in entertainment through style, and to feel closer to our brands.”

7. Consumer electronics retailer MediaMarktSaturn taps Nuvei online payments technology

Nuvei is working with MediaMarktSaturn to support online marketplace payments across its European markets.

The partnership enables localised payment experiences for customers and sellers across Europe.

“For large online marketplaces, payments are not just a transaction layer, they are a growth enabler,” says Phil Fayer, Chair and CEO at Nuvei. “MediaMarktSaturn operates at significant scale across a highly-fragmented European payments landscape. Our ability to support local payment preferences across markets, combined with our international reach, service model, and strong focus on complex B2B commerce, made Nuvei a natural partner for their online marketplace strategy.”

Nuvei offers various local payment methods (LPMs), including global wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay, and European methods such as Klarna, Wero, BLIK, and Bizum.

8. Unified commerce and PoS specialist NCR Voyix adds 7‑Eleven Philippines as new customer

NCR Voyix has announced a new customer win with 7‑Eleven Philippines. The retailer has selected Voyix PoS delivered on the Voyix Commerce Platform to upgrade store technology and improve the shopper experience across more than 4,500 locations. This marks the first engagement between the two companies.

It has also enlisted NCR Voyix for both professional and managed services.

“Improving store operations, enhancing deployment efficiency and strengthening security and compliance are critical priorities for our business,” says Richard Lee, President, 7‑Eleven Philippines. “NCR Voyix demonstrated a strong understanding of our needs and how its platform can help us introduce improvements at scale and serve customers better across our network.”

9. Ireland first as Uber connects with Manna for first European launch of drone delivery service

Uber Technologies and Manna have announced a partnership that will see Uber’s first European launch of drone deliveries.

Going live first in Ireland, the service integrates Manna’s autonomous drone delivery system with Uber’s platform and logistics experience. The pair are aiming to expand this into more European cities going forward.

“Autonomous technology is shaping the future of delivery, whether it’s on the streets or in the skies. By combining Uber’s scale with Manna’s proven aerial expertise, we’re bringing fast, efficient and sustainable delivery to consumers and merchants alike. We’re proud to launch in Europe and excited to introduce this technology to more Uber Eats customers over time,” says an Uber spokesperson.

“This partnership with Uber marks a defining moment for drone delivery,” says Eoghan Huston Chief Operating Officer at Manna Air Delivery.

“Over the past seven years, we’ve proven that autonomous aerial logistics can operate safely, reliably and at scale in real communities. Integrating with Uber’s global platform allows us to bring that capability to more consumers, merchants and independent retailers, accelerating the shift toward faster, cleaner last-mile delivery. Our focus remains simple: build the safest, fastest and most sustainable delivery infrastructure in the world.”

10. Agentic AI firm Profitmind lands $9 million Series A funding round led by Accenture Ventures

Profitmind, an agentic AI decision intelligence platform, has announced a $9 million Series A financing led by Accenture Ventures.

New investor Thorndale Farm participated in the round, alongside reinvestment from existing backers Magarac Venture Partners; AI Fund, led by Profitmind Chairman Andrew Ng; and Lightscape Partners. Several individual investors also participated, including board member Mario Ciampi, former President of Disney Store and former COO of The Children’s Place.

The funding will be used to scale the platform to more retailers globally, expand product capabilities and grow the team to support those efforts. It builds on a recent partnership with Microsoft to bring the platform to Microsoft Marketplace and Azure.

“Retail teams are not short on data, but they are short on time and decision-making confidence,” says Dr. Mark Chrystal, Co-Founder and CEO at Profitmind. “This investment allows us to scale a platform that replaces days of manual work with clear, strategy aligned recommendations teams can act on immediately with predictable outcomes.”