Smart stores and Apple Vision Pro apps: check out this week's coolest retail technology plays
RTIH Editor, Scott Thompson, brings you his top ‘future of retail’ systems launches and deployments from the past week, including REWE Group, Amazon, OneStock, Shopify, White Stuff, NewStore, Heinz, Ikea, Zippin, J.Crew, and Obsess, Disney, and Epic Games.
Tesco
Heinz
In partnership with VML Spain, Heinz is aiming to bridge the gap between food and technology by launching what is pitched as the first recipe book that teaches AI (and humans too) how to cook like a pro.
Caio Fontenele, Heinz New Ventures Director, says: “With over 50% of the general population admitting to using AI in their day to day lives, including for recipe inspiration and cooking instructions, we decided to put AI to the test. A culinary test.”
“And, despite AI being able to speak all languages, write speeches, launch satellites into space, we noticed that actually, when it comes to cooking, even AI needed some help.”
“Following this insight, our chefs partnered with AI experts to teach AI how to create the perfect recipes using only Heinz tomatoes.”
“Our AI Cookbook is a collection of curated prompts that when given to AI, create delicious food images and recipes that can be followed at home.”
“The secret ingredient to these perfect prompts? Heinz tomatoes. The cookbook is our latest milestone in making our most loved ingredient open to everyone – humans, and AI too”.
Lucy & Yak
British clothing brand, Lucy & Yak, has partnered with True Fit, an AI platform that decodes size and fit for online consumers and fashion retailers.
OpenChrono
Web3 platform OpenChrono launches this week with the introduction of a new transaction standard that, it claims, will protect consumers and reputable dealers from a secondary market for luxury watches beset by scams and scandal.
Disney and Epic Games
REWE Group
REWE Group has launched a REWE Ready ‘smart shop’ at the EnBW Hypernetz EV Charging Hub in Lichtenau/Chemnitz, Germany.
Customers can buy Rewe and Go sandwiches, wraps, salads, get a beer, buy cigarettes, and enjoy a cappuccino while they are charging their cars.
In a LinkedIn post, Mehmet Tözge, Director Smart Store Development at Lekkerland SE, said: “Lekkerland SE customer preferences have changed. End consumers want to shop 24/7, fast and with as few contacts as possible.”
The store includes smart fridges from Reckon.ai.
Shoppers scan their card, open the door, take their products, close the door and leave within 30 seconds.
Tözge said: “The combination of computer vision cameras with sensor fusion enables us to offer end consumers a unique, reliable and seamless way of shopping. The time to market and the ease of implementation: smart fridges are plug and play devices. Going live is a matter of seconds.”
He added: “New products are added within a couple of minutes. All temperature zones are possible. Shopping by Tap&Go or by mobile Application and much more.”
Ana Pinto, CEOat Reckon.ai. commented: “This is our first shop at an EV charging station powered by our AI smart cabinets, creating a fully autonomous shopping experience. The future is now.”
Dexory
Dexory, a European provider of AI and robotics solutions, has announced its expansion into the North American market.
The company is already working with global partners and lays claim to a significant US presence including DB Schenker, Menzies Aviation, Maersk and ID Logistics.
To lead the expansion, Todd Boone has joined the team as its Head of North American business.
The driving force behind this move is the rapidly evolving landscape of logistics and warehousing.
End customers continue to demand quicker turnaround times while warehouses address the urgent needs for improved space utilisation and increased efficiencies while wrestling with ongoing labor scarcity.
Jules
French menswear retailer, Jules, has selected Nextail to transform in-season merchandising processes through AI driven demand forecasting and decision automation.
Nextail will look to drive enhanced allocation and replenishment across Jules’s 550 stores in France and abroad.
OneStock and Shopify
OneStock has launched an application designed to effortlessly integrate its Order Management System (OMS) with the Shopify commerce platform.
"OneStock envisions a retail landscape where order management is easy; easy to deploy, easy to configure, easy for users day to day and easy to track,” says Romulus Grigoras, CEO at OneStock.
"This is a major step forward in the retail industry's journey towards more efficient order management as part of a fully integrated shopping experience. Our OMS features have been available to Shopify users for a long time now, as we have a few customers such as the French shirtmaker, Figaret Paris, using OneStock OMS with Shopify e-commerce.”
“However the ‘wow’ fact here, is that we've now gone one step further in seamless integration and, thanks to this connector, are now reducing by half the integration efforts required to add order management to all orders coming to a Shopify platform.”
The connector offers a range of features to mid-market and enterprise businesses, including real-time synchronisation, stock unification, intelligent order allocation, Ship from Store, Click and Collect and Delivery Promise.
Ikea
Ikea has launched an AI powered home design, inspiration and shopping tool, available exclusively on the OpenAI GPT Store.
It says that the move marks “a significant step in democratising planning services and creating a better life for the many, by offering a tool that gives users personalised furniture and decor suggestions based on factors such as room dimensions, personal style, sustainability preferences, budget, functional requirements, and more.”
“The new Ikea AI Assistant on GPT Store is an ongoing initiative, and the continuation of a journey that looks to enrich the retail experience and explore additional avenues to interact with our customers and coworkers, as they help us improve and develop further,” says Parag Parekh, Global Chief Digital Officer at Ikea Retail (Ingka Group).
White Stuff
NewStore, a mobile first unified commerce platform for retail brands, has landed a deal with British lifestyle and fashion retailer White Stuff.
The project is in its early stages, with a NewStore spokesperson telling RTIH that the company is currently unable to share indepth information.
However, in a LinkedIn post, Martin Farrell, Senior Account Executive at NewStore, said: “White Stuff is an iconic British fashion and lifestyle brand, founded by two friends George Treves and Sean Thomas in 1985.”
“They’ve grown to become a high street favourite with >100 stores across the UK and Germany, with even more stores planned (including my hometown, Liverpool).”
He added: “There’s way too many exciting initiatives planned to mention here, so I’ll summarise using the words of Trading Director, Tracey Verghese in her recent Fashion United interview “there’s a real ‘watch this space’ kind of energy". I couldn't agree more, Tracey.”
“Thank you to Jo Jenkins (CEO at White Stuff), Steve Borg (Technology and Transformation Director) and James Brazeley (Enterprise Architect) for your trust in NewStore; we’re delighted to work together alongside AbsoluteLabs. and I can’t wait to see the results!”
J.Crew
J.Crew has launched a Virtual Closet app on Apple Vision Pro, the heavily hyped new spatial computer that blends digital content with the physical world and unlocks spatial experiences.
Created in partnership with Obsess, this allows users to shop J.Crew products in an interactive, ultra-high-definition 3D environment.
It utilises SharePlay, a set of features for shared experiences while on a FaceTime call, to chat with J.Crew's stylists or host group calls to get others' opinions on looks.
Zippin
Lidl Ireland
Lidl Ireland reports significant progress in the installation of in-store solutions enabling customers to return cans and bottles.
In a LinkedIn post, Alan Barry, Chief Development Officer (CDO) at Lidl Ireland & Lidl Northern Ireland, says:
“In less than 12 months Lidl Ireland has installed 358 Re-turn machines in 179 stores, constructed 88 Deposit Return Rooms and invested tens of millions of euros.”
“Our solution puts the customer first with two Re-turn machines in every store ensuring no customer has to queue to return cans or bottles.”
He added: “Every year an estimated 1.9 billion cans and plastic bottles are consumed and by 2029 as part of the Single Use Plastics Directive, Ireland must recycle 90%.”
“With the launch of Re-turn today, we are happy to play our part in creating A Better Tomorrow. All this would not have been possible without a phenomenal effort from a hugely dedicated team.”
Amazon
Priced from £2, the Red Nose 2024 collection is now available on Amazon, with free one-day delivery, and in Amazon Fresh stores and Whole Foods Market from 15th February.
Money raised this Red Nose Day could help tackle poverty, provide food, essential healthcare or safe shelter for people in the UK and around the world.
This year’s collection of noses are made from plant-based materials and are fully recyclable at home.
Each one comes with a QR code that takes you to the Red Nose Day Joke Generator, in collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS).
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