Retail Archives - Circuits and Cable Knit

Jet.com Amazon Walmart Quidsi Purchase Largest Acquisition e-commerce e-tailer

Jet.com Purchased By Walmart for $3.3 Billion

August 8, 2016

When Jet.com launched last July we predicted that the company had no illusions it would beat out rival Amazon.com. Instead, our conclusion was that Jet.com was a company launched with the intent of being purchased. Twelve months later, it seems we were on the right path. It was just announce that, after being rumored late last week, Walmart has purchased Jet.com for $3.3 billion. This marks one of the largest acquisitions of an e-commerce company ever (by companion Amazon purchased Jet.com founder’s previous business, Quidsi – think Soap.com, for $545 million). The ubiquitous big box store is purchasing the e-tailer startup to bolster their online shopping efforts, which despite being second, distantly behind Amazon, has seen sluggish growth as of late. The goal is to make the Walmart.com experience more seamless and to accelerate growth. Jet.com will continue to exist (for now) and CEO Marc Lore will continue to head it up.

by Doug Parker

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MCX CurrentC Postponed Failed Dead Mobile Payment NFC

Retail

NFC Future Bright As Mobile Payment Provider CurrentC “Postpones” Launch Again

May 17, 2016

Way back in 2012, the world of mobile payments was new, exciting, and largely uncharted. Companies were posturing to figure out what the future of the payments would look like. NFC tech in phones was a fledgling technology and was far from a sure bet for payment tech. It was during this time that a collection of merchants called the Merchant Payment Consortium (MCX) was formed to create their ideal payment system. Paramount for the new system was the ability to collect user data and avoid credit card processing fees. Based on QR codes, the sharing of data between merchants, and direct withdrawals from the user’s checking account, the CurrentC mobile payment system was created. Four years later and still struggling to come to market, MCX finds CurrentC the odd man out.

MCX has just announced that it will postpone the launch of CurrentC. The postponement feels rather permanent as no timeline or next step was provided by MCX. In fact the Consortium simultaneously announced layoffs and a change of business direction. The layoffs appear to be significant, involving around 30 people which seemingly represents around 1/3 of the company’s staff. Looking through the double-talk and corporate jargon of the press release, CurrentC essentially has one foot in the grave. According to the company, the decision was made “utilizing unique feedback from the marketplace and [the] Columbus pilot.” Not sure what this “unique” feedback was, but the “marketplace” has been decidedly vocal against the payment system for some time. The QR system was overly complex, the lack of privacy concerning, and the ability for merchants (or hackers) to draw directly from a bank account scary. By contrast, competing mobile payment systems almost universally rely on contactless NFC tech that hides user data and tokenizes credit card information, valuing privacy above all else.

by Doug Parker

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Amazon Quietly Launched 7 Private Label Fashion Brands

Retail

Amazon Has Quietly Launched 7 Private Label Fashion Brands

February 25, 2016

A few months ago we took a look at the threat Amazon posed to traditional fashion retailers. While you might think of the online retail giant as your go-to place for electronics, books, and household items, Amazon has quickly become one of the top clothing and accessories merchants in the world. With a GMV (gross merchandise volume) of $16 Billion and realizing an average quarterly growth of 29%, it won’t be long before the site catches top with current #1, Macy’s, who has a GMV of $24 Billion.

One of the biggest hurdles Amazon is facing in growing their fashion business is gaps in selection. While one can barely keep count of the number of sweatpants being offered, if you are looking for a quality men’s suit the choices are much slimmer. To flesh out clothing categories and hopefully encourage other brands to sell on the site, Amazon will selectively utilize private labels.

by Doug Parker

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Chase BoA Bank of America Wells Fargo ATM eATM NFC Apple Pay Android Pay Samsung Pay

Business, Retail

Why Mobile Payment ATMs Signal The End Of Debit Cards

February 3, 2016

While paying for things at retail is getting simpler and faster everyday thanks to mobile payment systems such as Apple Pay, the ATM experience has only gotten worse over the past 6 months. The introduction of the EMV chip on debit cards means we have returned to the olden days, where ATMs hold onto your card until the transaction is complete. Recently, while I was waiting the 30+ seconds it now takes for the cash machine to simply read my card, I pondered, “Wouldn’t it be amazing if I could just walk up to an ATM and use Apple Pay / Android Pay to get my cash out.”

Either the ATMs are mic’d or I am not the only one who has thought this because 3 out of the 4 largest US banks almost simultaneously announced that they plan to roll out contactless-payment ATMs. Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo will all begin the process of upgrading their machines this year. BoA will be the first to market, intruding NFC equipped terminals by the end of February at selects retail banks in NYC, Charlotte, Boston, Silicon Valley, and San Francisco. Though the bank has told employees not to disclose which mobile payment services it will be compatible with, it is tough to imagine that the ATMs won’t at least support Apple Pay and Android Pay. If a bank’s debit card is already compatible with a mobile payment service, integration should be trivial. (Perhaps Apple is asking banks not to announce Apple Pay integration so the company can make a big announcement at their rumored upcoming March press event.)

by Doug Parker

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Retail

Shift Debit Card Lets You Spend Bitcoins Anywhere Visa Is Accepted

November 24, 2015

Whether you view Bitcoins as the true democratization of currency or a passing fad, there are a number of people whom have some of their net worth wrapped up in the currency. While most of those people are purely speculating and hoping that Bitcoins catch on and gain in value, there is a segment of people who would like to spend the cryptocurrency on real world items. That process is now a lot easier thanks to Shift. Shift is a Visa debit card that connects to your Coinable Bitcoin account. Simply use the card any place you would normally use a debit card and the service converts the value of the purchase to Bitcoins and subtracts it from your account. Before you go rushing out to spend your hard earned cryptocurrency, there are a few caveats. First, you have to live in one of the 24 states Shift is allowed to operate in (sorry NY). Second, you are limited to a daily $1000 transaction limit and a $200 daily cap on ATM withdrawals.

The whole idea is pretty fascinating but we aren’t sold. After the collapse of Mt. Gox and word that the Bitcoin Foundation is essentially bankrupt we are left wondering a) how safe is your Bitcoin money and b) are the people involved serious about creating any structure to the currency. Also we aren’t convinced that Bitcoin’s current target audience is looking to embrace a massive financial organization such as Visa; it seems counter to the entire movement. But if you are looking to spend Bitcoins, Shift is your best option, that is unless you buy a lot of things at Dell, Overstock.com, Newegg, or Microsoft.

by Doug Parker

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Square Contactless Apple Pay Android NFC EMV Chip

Retail

Square Releases Next Gen Card Reader With NFC And EMV

November 23, 2015

Over the past twelve months a lot has changed with how you use your credit card to pay for things. Almost a year ago, Apple launched the most polished and high profile contactless (NFC) payment system to date. People who had never heard of mobile payments suddenly knew what it was and were using it to easily and safely buy everything from a Big Mac to their prescriptions drugs. This year Google, Samsung, and LG launched similar NFC based payment systems. The second big change in credit cards was the push for EMV chip equipped cards (also known as chip-and-signature). At the start of October, retailers became fully liable for any fraudulent purchases made via a magnetic based ‘swipe,” while fraudulent purchases made via the EMV chip or through contactless payment are still protected.

The problem is these changes all require new equipment, an easy proposition for a large, multi-door retailer but a tall order for a small boutique. Square, whose original phone / tablet card-swipe accessory changed the credit card processing business, has begun shipping their next generation card reader. The small, Bluetooth connected device allows a small business to easily begin accepting contactless payments, such as Apple Pay, or chip-and-signature based payments. Simply pair the reader to the phone / tablet you use as a register and then connect it to your Square account and you are ready to go. Since the system is Bluetooth based, you can also have the original “swipe” accessory connected to your register simultaneously. At $49, Square’s new device is a no brainer. All it takes is one fraudulent transaction and you could be out a lot more than $49! But the tech isn’t just good news to retailers; given the number of Square-based registers we come across in a week, it is easy to see that the company’s new reader could spur the next leap in the widespread adaption of contactless payments.

by Doug Parker

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ralph lauren Polo Oak Labs smart dressing room

Retail

Polo Ralph Lauren Launches Smart Dressing Rooms

November 18, 2015

Ralph Lauren announced today that it has partnered with Oak Labs to launch smart dressing rooms in their flagship Polo store on 5th Avenue in New York. When you enter the dressing room, RFID tags on the clothes you are trying on are automatically read and the mirror displays which size and styles you have brought in. As you try on items, you can select it on the mirror to see other sizes and colors are available. If you need a different size or want to see another color, simply tap the screen and a salesperson will bring it to you. As you are trying on items, the mirror displays a complete “look” featuring the article of clothing. You can use the “look” as a fit guide, to get ideas on how it would fit into your wardrobe, or even shop the “look” and have the other items brought to you in the dressing room. The new dressing rooms also address the sometimes misleading lighting in a fitting room, offering three on-brand lighting simulations: 5th Avenue Daylight, East Hampton Sunset, or Evening At The Polo Bar. While you cannot check out directly from the fitting room, like at Rebecca Minkoff, when you are finished in the dressing room you can have the items you tried on automatically texted to yourself, complete with a web link. Unlike the Polo Tech shirt which was announced a year before it launched, the high tech dressing rooms are already up and running. There are 4 specially equipped rooms on both the men’s and the women’s floors of the Polo Ralph Lauren store.

If you haven’t heard of Ralph Lauren’s partner for their smart dressing room, there is a good reason; Ralph Lauren is Oak Labs the first client. Based out of San Francisco, Oak Labs is only a few months old and

by Doug Parker

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Retail

Jet.com Purchased By Walmart for $3.3 Billion

NFC Future Bright As Mobile Payment Provider CurrentC “Postpones” Launch Again

Amazon Has Quietly Launched 7 Private Label Fashion Brands

Why Mobile Payment ATMs Signal The End Of Debit Cards

Shift Debit Card Lets You Spend Bitcoins Anywhere Visa Is Accepted

Square Releases Next Gen Card Reader With NFC And EMV

Polo Ralph Lauren Launches Smart Dressing Rooms

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