To help merchants and promote Afterpay in-store payment services to individuals before the busy holiday shopping season, buy now, pay later (BNPL) firm Afterpay and Simon have announced a national collaboration.
“With the busy holiday season upon us, we are proud to offer a truly multi-channel payment solution that has proven to bring new customers and increased sales to our retail partners,” Afterpay Global Chief Revenue Officer Melissa Davis said in the announcement. “Our new in-store solution is yet another way to support merchants by offering a powerful budgeting tool that allows shoppers to spend their own money over time — whether they prefer to buy in a physical store or online.”
Shoppers in the United States will have the capacity to easily and safely pay for their purchases in the stores of participating retailers in four installment payments without having to pay upfront charges or interest or get a traditional loan.
The offering is fully complimentary for shoppers who pay on schedule, according to the announcement, while it is a clean and secure way to pay as the payment is touch-free.
Shoppers can start a purchase in stores by selecting the card icon in the Afterpay mobile program, which activates the Afterpay card that can be used for purchases via Google Pay or Apple Pay.
Afterpay said there aren’t retailer integration costs connected with taking Afterpay, as the company’s payments are conducted via the payment terminals that merchants already have.
Millennial and Gen Z shoppers are focusing on sustainable and ethical fashion and retail more than before. However, these purchases can be viewed as too costly in a market full of less-expensive alternatives. Some luxury merchants are combating this by turning to installment payment plans, which let retailers more flexibly accommodate shoppers' purchases.
“We see millennial and Gen Z customers absolutely shopping, and the brands that deeply understand them are growing at faster rates than they have ever grown before,” Afterpay Co-Founder and U.S. CEO Nick Molnar said in a past PYMNTS panel. “And there's a huge opportunity. The exclusive product-drop ecosystem is on fire, the online market and just the frequency with which customers are transacting is definitely elevating. There are real opportunities for those brands that deeply understand their consumer.”
Reports over the summer that Amazon was negotiating with Simon Property Group to take positions at anchor tenant spaces for fulfillment hubs signaled the start of significant changes at retail centers throughout the nation.
