December retail tech highlights included Snoop Dogg’s new cannabis site.
Retailers in December 2024 focused technology efforts in areas including AI-based customer engagement, delivery drones, and celebrity-driven cannabis e-commerce.
Here are some of the most noteworthy and innovative technology stories as reported by Chain Store Age in December, starting with the most recent.
- Ulta Beauty lets customers try out hair colors, styles virtually with generative AI Ulta Beauty is releasing a new mobile app experience called GLAMlab Hair Try-On that lets users take a photo, upload a headshot or use a model’s picture to virtually see near-instant, realistic previews of how different hair colors and styles would look. The solution is based on the Nvidia StyleGAN2 generative AI model.
- David’s Bridal acquires video platform, launches media network David’s Bridal has acquired Love Stories TV, a video-focused digital wedding planning platform, and is introducing a new retail media network called Pearl Media Network. The moves are part of a strategic shift to make the retailer a “rising tech and media company.
- Ace Retail Holdings deploying new merchandising/POS platform Ace Retail Holdings, a division of Ace Hardware Corporation, has selected Mi9 Retail as its enterprise retail partner for merchandising and POS technology. This builds on years of an existing relationship in which Mi9 has been a partner to Ace Retail Holdings and its Westlake Ace chain.
- Taylor Swift, TikTok drive luxury resale trends in 2024 According to the fifth annual Clair (Comprehensive Luxury Appraisal Index for Resale) Report from Rebag, pop stars Taylor Swift and Charli XCX and the TikTok video-focused social media platform were major influencers on luxury resale during the past year.
- Bloomingdale’s enhances online shopping thru DTC websites Bloomingdale’s has launched a partnership with Lucky that will enable luxury brands to seamlessly connect their direct-to-consumer (DTC) websites with its in-store inventory. Online shoppers can instantly check the availability of their favorite luxury products at their local Bloomingdale’s stores while browsing their preferred brand’s website.