Zip Debuts In-Store BNPL Payment Option in UK

Shoppers are able to use Buy Now, Pay Later with Zip in the U.K. with new developments, a report says.

Zip’s services will let customers pay contactless and in installments.

They will need to have their virtual Zip card on-hand and will have to have a digital wallet.

The new service is called Tap and Pay and will first start in several select stores: Homebase, The Fragrance Shop, Jollyes – The Pet People, and Hype clothing.

More stores will follow in the future.

The report says that around 20% of U.K. adults have used BNPL in the past year, and research by Zip showed that 12% of adults under 35 might shop in a store if BNPL was offered. And 13% of adults have said that they’re likely to use BNPL this year for holiday shopping to help offset the costs of their gifts.

“Using our global platform, we’re bringing Tap and Pay with Zip to the U.K., meaning for the first time shoppers can buy now and pay later in-store,” said Zip managing director Anthony Drury. “The benefit of Tap and Pay is it’s hassle-free. You don’t need a code to use Zip instore, just use our virtual card through any digital wallet.”

In July, PYMNTS wrote that the BNPL surge has been getting bigger in the past few years, boosted by the pandemic’s economic effects. It has also become lucrative enough to draw in big names like PayPal, Visa and others.

See more: How The BNPL Surge Is Shifting Merchants’ Outlooks — And Consumer Behavior

PYMNTS writes that the interest comes from the sheer amount of demand and the loyal way customers use it: around 48% of BNPL users won’t buy from a merchant not offering it as an option. Younger customers have particularly been drawn to the service, with around 26% of millennials and 11% of Gen Z customers using BNPL for recent online purchases as of the summer of 2021.