Digital and e-commerce news - June 2022
Here below you can find my selection of most interesting digital and e-commerce news that I have read and collected in June. Have a good read!
Hard times for Q-Commerce players. Gorillas exiting Italy, Getir cutting workforce while JOKR leaving US to focus on LatAm.
Credits: Getir
Gorillas is shifting its focus from growth to profitability by cutting employees and through a strategy switch. According to their announcement, they will focus on the five strategic core markets (Germany, France, the Netherlands, the UK, and the US) and they will cease their operations in Italy. Read the news here and here.
At the same time, Getir is cutting 14% of its global staff. Getir’s workforce and spending cuts will differ from country to country, although it will not be pulling out of any markets for now. Read more here.
Finally, JOKR is ceasing operations in New York and Boston and refocusing on the Latin American market, which company executives say should be more profitable. Read news here.
Amazon will expand to five new countries, starting with Belgium.
Credits: Amazon
Amazon plans expansion into five new countries: Belgium, Chile, Colombia, Nigeria and South Africa. Belgium should be the first, with an early launch this September. Business Insider reports, based on leaked internal documents, that Belgian launch is symbolically codenamed “Red Devil”, after the country’s national football team. Read more here.
Apple shaking up BNPL market with the new “Apple Pay Later” service.
Credits: Jakub Porzycki | Nurphoto | Getty Images
Pay Later, Apple’s BNPL service, was announced during the WWDC 2022 keynote. For now, the service should be available only in the US starting from this autumn. Apple promises that customers can pay in four monthly instalments at zero interest. This is the first time a device manufacturer has decided to become a financier of the purchases of users who use its products. However, Apple has entered a market grappling with the financial crisis, rising interest rates, and in the crosshairs of regulators in Europe and the United States (who are interested in debt solvency and making sure users are aware of the debt they are taking on). News here.
eBay launched a new Live Shopping experience with a focus on Collectibles.
Credits: eBay
eBay launched eBay Live at the end of June, a dedicated shopping platform that allows users to explore and buy items in a real-time, interactive environment.
On one of the world's largest marketplaces, the new beta technology mixes entertainment with rapid purchasing. The first live event has been hosted by trading card aficionado DJ Skee, and it included a selected collection of highly wanted and rare trading cards.
Read the announcement here.
Deliveroo announces a new advertising platform in the UK.
Credits: Deliveroo
In late June, Deliveroo has announced the launch of its new advertising platform called Deliveroo Media and Ecommerce. Beginning in July, businesses will be able to target Deliveroo users with pertinent offers through the company's app, website, social media, email, and push notification campaigns. Deliveroo's order tracking page will now feature advertising for the first time. New layouts and sponsored search listings will debut in the upcoming months.
Read the announcement here.
Amazon invests in AR and launches a new virtual ‘try-on’ shopping experience for shoes.
Credits: Amazon
Amazon has launched a virtual try-on service for shoes. Now, consumers can try a pair of shoes and get an image in AR of what the worn model will look like, with the choice, in addition, to change the colors of the pieces. The service at the moment is available for customers only in the U.S. and Canada and includes thousands of models such as Reebok, Adidas, Saucony, Superga, Asics, and New Balance, which have found an opportunity to present their offerings in an innovative way through this service. Read the news here.
Shopify unveiled new tools and a unique Twitter shopping feature.
Credits: Shopify
As part of its new semi-annual innovation exhibition, Shopify Editions, the company has introduced a number of new shopping options for businesses. The main highlights are:
"Tokengated commerce" which enables Shopify merchants to provide special experiences to NFT holders;
an enhanced B2B offering;
a new sales collaboration with Twitter. Starting in the US, companies integrated into Shopify's ecosystem will now have access to additional shopping capabilities for their profiles and be able to communicate with customers straight from their Twitter accounts.
Read more about the new releases here.
Haier reimagined home laundry with the launch of a new pay-per-wash service.
In Italy now you can do your laundry in exchange for a monthly fee. The service is called WashPass and Haier announced it last month. Basically, it is a subscription washing machine, a pay-per-wash borrowed from the pay-per-use that is quite frequent in the digital economy.
Here, the real innovation is not just the payment model applied in a different industry but it is also technological. Indeed, the machine is a purpose-built model and it is designed to choose ingredients based on the type of laundry and in the right quantities. A computer vision system transmits the information and also suggests which program to use. The savings are therefore on washing efficiency and waste. In fact, the appliance, being connected, will automatically order detergent cartridges and take care of calling the technician in case of maintenance. The cost involves a fixed fee of around 80-100 € and then a monthly fee based on usage that could be 10-20 € depending on the number of washes. Read more here.
