Electrical retailer Currys says it was the fourth busiest website in the UK over Black Friday with eight million customers online.
It is also getting into the Christmas song business, with a tune courtesy of one of its employees.
In a LinkedIn post, Andy Gamble, Chief Information Officer | Chief Transformation Officer at Currys, said: “Raphael Barnett, aka 3Style from our Staples Corner store, penned and performed an incredible track featuring samples from a selection of in-store tech.”
He added: “And because it’s Christmas – for every watch/like the video gets on TikTok we’re donating 1p to help combat digital poverty. So show some love… and let me know what you think in the comments.”
Altogether now, we’re real, no robots, advice on point, no roadblocks, tech experts to get setup, come shop live for no holdups.
Pamela Puncher
Currys has appointed Pamela Puncher as Head of Delivery.
She joins from Dyson where, over almost four years, she held such roles as Director of Programmes and Project Management, and Owner Experience Programme Manager – Global IT.
In a LinkedIn post, Puncher said: “Today (Monday, 5th December), I started my new role as Head of Delivery as part of the technology and transformation team at Currys.”
“They went all out on the welcome banner to signal my arrival in their wonderful, welcoming, people focussed offices at WeWork Waterloo.”
“Many thanks to Andy Gamble (CIO), Dharmini Chauhan (Technology Director), Drew Mawson (Programme Director), and Philippa Ruchniewicz (Harrington-Smith) (Director of Strategic Change & Portfolio, for the warm welcome, really looking forward to meeting the rest of the team over the next couple of weeks and getting stuck in.”
Robotic exoskeleton suits
Currys recently announced that it had invested over £250,000 in a fleet of robotic exoskeleton suits to help colleagues from logistics partner, GXO, work safely and efficiently through the festive period.
The suits, which are being used at Currys’ facility in Newark, will help people carry out their physical day to day tasks, with the aim of putting less pressure on their joints and muscles while lifting heavy loads.
The Newark site will help deliver 8.7 million units of stock to all 309 of its stores this Black Friday period.
The robotic suits are worn like a small backpack and give colleagues at least 10 tonnes of relief over the course of a typical working shift — with up to 30kg of assistance to the lower back per lift.
Made with ultralight carbon fibre, the waterproof exoskeleton incorporates the AI-based Smart Safety Companion ergonomics early warning system to alert of signs of poor posture and incorrect lifting practices in real-time.
Lindsay Haselhurst, Currys Chief Operating Officer, commented: “The physical and mental wellbeing of our colleagues and our service partners is really important to us.”
“As the number one technology retailer in the UK, we aim to have state-of-the-art tech throughout our supply chain. Combining this with our priority to support our colleagues is why we have invested in these exoskeletons at our Newark distribution centre.”
Gavin Williams, GXO Managing Director for the UK and Ireland, said: “We’ve successfully deployed robotic suits in several warehouses across GXO’s global network and are excited to make this technology available to our team in the Newark site thanks to Currys’ significant investment.”
“This is a testament to our joint commitment to provide a safe and fulfilling working environment for our employees, whilst unlocking efficiencies and delivering substantial savings for our customer.”
The suits are made and developed by German Bionic and named the Cray X.
“We are delighted that Currys, the UK’s leading retailer of electronics and home appliances, have partnered with us to empower their warehouse workers with our Cray X exoskeletons that will help them to lift and carry goods more safely and with the support they need to safeguard their health,” said Armin Schmidt, CEO at German Bionic.
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