Artificial Intelligence

Wayfair is extending its commitment to 3D technology — again.   The online furniture retailer expanded the library of its WayfairView augmented reality app by “thousands” of products. The app is also now available on the Asus ZenFone, a smartphone that is equipped with Google’s Tango and Daydream virtual reality functionality.   

Amazon’s new service is helping Prime members to get dinner on the table faster.   By integrating Alexa into Amazon Restaurants, the retail giant now enables Prime members to voice-order their next meal through their Alexa-enabled devices, including the Amazon Echo and Echo Dot. Customers can place orders from any restaurant available on the service in more than 20 cities by saying, “Alexa, order from Amazon Restaurants.” Any meal they’ve ordered before will delivered to their door for free in an hour or less.

The chief technology officer of Nordstrom is leaving the company after less than a year on the job.      Kumar Srinivasan is leaving the upscale department store company effective Friday, Jan. 7, to return to India, GeekWire reported.    Srinivasan, who joined Nordstrom in March, after serving as the co-founder and CEO of software company Evocalize. Prior to that, he was the former general manager at Amazon Payments Merchant Solutions unit   

A 12-year-old CEO is among the 25 individuals named to the National Retail Foundation’s 2017 List of People Shaping Retail’s Future.    Mikaila Ulmer, founder and CEO of Me & The Bees Lemonade http://gala.nrf.com/the-list-2017#MIKAILA-ULMER, is the youngest of the list’s honorees, all of whom will be recognized at the NRF Foundation Gala on January 15 during the NRF Big Show in New York City.  

TRENDING STORES: Two Canadian brands are dropping anchor in the United States. Health and beauty retailer Saje Natural Wellness, which operates 45 locations up north, will open two stores in the Los Angeles area by year end. Another 25 stores are on tap for 2017. Featuring natural wellness, personal and home care products and accessories, Saje stores are open, light and airy, with a high level of design. The Saje store at Toronto’s Sherway Gardens features a 30-foot Italian tile façade.

Innovation is today’s buzzword. And it was all the talk at Chain Store Age’s X/SPECS 2016, as key executives from some of the nation’s leading retail and restaurant chains zeroed in on real-world strategies designed to innovate stores and elevate customer experiences.

LEDs, wireless controls are key to the future of retail lighting solutions

Lighting is fundamental to any retail store, whether for setting a scene and influencing how a brand is perceived or even encouraging shoppers to make a particular purchase. However, if not managed correctly, it can be extremely expensive. In fact, lighting accounts for around 53% of all electricity consumption in a typical retail outlet, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

As digital disruptors continue to alter retail operations, brands are working to harness these emerging innovations to drive engagement among shoppers and employees. Look for the National Retail Federation’s upcoming 106th annual convention to educate attendees on these and other critical business strategies.

CBRE announced it has acquired Floored, a provider of 3-D graphics technology that helps retailers envision build-outs of their commercial space. Its SaaS (Software as a Service) solutions figure to quickly be incorporated into CBRE’s leasing operations.   

Coming soon to Starbucks: virtual baristas.   The coffee giant plans to add a Siri-like virtual assistant to its mobile app that will allow users to place an order by talking to a virtual barista that will then send the order to a store nearby user where it will be made by an employee.