31/05/12
By Karen Moss
PayPal's 15 million UK customers can now use their smartphones to pay at stores owned by the Aurora Fashions group – Coast, Oasis and Warehouse – and Karen Millen. The service launches nationally on today and will be available in 230 stores.
The PayPal inStore app, available for Android and Apple iOS (iPhone and iPad) devices, brings the flexibility of online shopping to the High Street. The app provides the customer with a unique barcode and transaction number, which the shop cashier scans to take payment from the customer’s PayPal account.
Payments, refunds and discounts are all managed via the app.
Paying with PayPal’s in-store app is very secure: the customer enters a PIN to open the app, and no personal or financial information, or money, is stored on her phone. It even works when there is no mobile or Wi-Fi signal. Through the app, the customer can also request a refund in the store for something she’s bought online or on the high street from that PayPal in-store retailer.
Customers can download the app and find more information at www.paypal.co.uk/instore. PayPal and Oasis have also created a video showing how quick and simple it is to pay by app at www.paypal.co.uk/blog
Cameron McLean, MD, PayPal UK, says: “Today marks the start of a quiet revolution in the way we shop on the High Street. We've created a simple, secure way to use a mobile phone to pay in your favourite stores. The revolution starts today at Oasis, Warehouse, Karen Millen and Coast. The lines between the online world and High Street will soon disappear altogether: research we carried out last year amongst major retailers suggested that 2016 will be the year you won’t need a wallet to shop on the British high street. A phone will be enough.
"Today's move also underlines our view that mobile payments don't need near field communication (NFC) technology to succeed. PayPal’s ‘pay by mobile’ service works with the phones most of our customers already own. And our retail partner doesn't have to install new systems to take in-store mobile payments."
Ish Patel, group omni-channel director at Aurora Fashions, says: “Customers demand more from physical stores: outstanding service and a more personalised experience enabled by new technology. Catering for payment flexibility is a now a crucial part of ensuring we are providing customers with a seamless experience by merging digital commerce with physical retailing.
“Our partnership with PayPal allows us to take the next step in our omnichannel journey, ensuring customers can safely and securely purchase items using their own mobile phones. We’re proud to be innovating on the UK High Street and continuing to lead the way in providing a new kind of shopping experience."
