The Retail Times is a weekly newsletter a weekly newsletter covering retail tech news from Canada and around the globe.
Subscribe to R|T using the form at the bottom of this page to ensure you don’t miss out on the most important retail tech news every week!
Kindred closes $35.4M Series B from Tencent, launches pilot program with major retailers (BETAKIT)
Kindred Sort has launched with major retailers like Gap.
DMS RECOMMENDS: teaBOT grows its robot empire one cup of tea at a time (DMS)
For teaBOT there’s no better home base than Toronto. But that hasn’t kept the startup from expanding to cities like Palo Alto and Chicago.
Retailers offer tools to help online shoppers (RECORDONLINE)
Retailers are unleashing tools that use artificial intelligence to replicate the help a salesperson at a store might offer, calculate a shopper’s most likely body shape, or use 3D models for a virtual fitting room try-on.
Australian ecommerce startup raises $4M to take furniture retail online (TECHINASIA)
The round was led by AirTree Ventures, with participation from Bailador Technology Investments and BMY Group.
Startup Canada Podcast: The Future of Fashion with Peter Simons (BETAKIT)
“We are really in a moment of thinking about 20, 50 years, different social aspects, energy, communication, all these things are going to impact all business, not just retail. We have to build the company for that time frame.”
Amazon takes on office supply retailers with launch of Business Prime Shipping (TECHCRUNCH)
The move is a direct challenge to office supply stores, like Staples and Office Depot, as well as other big box retailers like Walmart, and warehouse deals stores like Costco.
Retail tech superstar Holli Rogers interblends offline with online (FASHNERD)
Holli Rogers’s two-storey boutique, Browns, is already in its first phase of augmented retail.
Chinese startup gets $4B to battle Alibaba amid ‘local ecommerce’ boom (TECHINASIA)
Meituan-Dianping, a service-focused ecommerce platform, raised the funds from Tencent.
Predictive marketing startup Reflektion raises $12M for international expansion (TECHCRUNCH)
Reflektion, which uses predictive analytics to increase conversion rates on e-commerce sites, raised the funds from Hasso Plattner, with participation from Battery Ventures and Clear Ventures.
Fingerlix grabs US$7M more to deliver ready-to-cook food at your doorsteps (THEINDEPENDENT)
Fingerlix, an on-demand ready-to-cook fresh food delivery brand in India, raised the Series B round of funding from Accel Partners.
Postmedia commits to $40 million in Indochino advertising for a cut of revenue (BETAKIT)
“We believe it’s a perfect fit,” said Postmedia CEO Andrew MacLeod.
