Checkout.com lands major paytech deal with Sainsbury’s
Checkout.com, a cloud-based payments service provider, has been appointed by UK retailer Sainsbury’s “to simplify and modernise payment infrastructure across its business”.
Checkout.com lands major paytech deal with Sainsbury’s
The paytech says the first stage of its “long-term innovation partnership” is the roll-out of new till-free technology.
It explains: “The new Checkout.com-enabled SmartShop functionality will allow customers to pay for their shopping without having to visit a till. Instead, they will pay on-the-go via the Sainsbury’s SmartShop app on their smartphones, saving them time and creating a more flexible shopping experience.”
Underpinning the new functionality will be Checkout.com’s payments platform, enabling transactions through digital wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay. This is live across Sainsbury’s “scan-and-go” SmartShop stores and will be rolled out to Argos (a catalogue retailer operating in the UK and Ireland) and Habitat (furniture and home furnishings) stores in the coming months. Both brands are part of the Home Retail Group that was acquired by Sainsbury’s in 2016 for £1.4 billion.
ProcessOut, a Checkout.com product, will also act as Sainsbury’s payment orchestration platform, directing all processing across the business. Once fully implemented, the provider says, it “will allow Sainsbury’s to streamline its legacy systems, meaning it can see online orders in real-time, permitting better data-driven decisions and insights, and more tailored offers and experiences for its customers”.
Helen Hunter, chief technology officer (CTO), customer and data, Sainsbury’s, says Checkout.com “goes above and beyond” as a supplier. She adds that the group’s evolving omnichannel strategy is “underpinned by Checkout.com’s platform”.
Sainsbury’s history dates back to 1869 when John James and Mary Ann Sainsbury opened the company’s first food store. Today, the group operates in-store and online via several brands, including Argos, Tu Clothing, Habitat, Sainsbury’s Bank and Nectar.
Sainsbury’s has around 600 supermarkets and 800 convenience stores. Argos is a predominantly online retailer, with over 90% of its sales starting digitally (and available for customers to collect from Sainsbury’s stores in addition to home delivery). The company claims to be the third most visited retail website in the UK.
