Hillcrest sees incredible success with mobile pay: A sign of what’s to come for Canada?

Hillcrest recently launched mobile payments via AliPay and WeChat Pay at its Guest Experience Desk, introducing these platforms to shoppers through a special gift card offer this February.

According to a 2017 Neilson study, 67 per cent of Canadian smartphone mobile payers (who do not use mobile wallets currently) are or will become mobile wallet users by this year.

To introduce this service to shoppers, Hillcrest is offering a special promo. From February 1 – February 18, customers purchasing a Oxford Gift Card Plus with a minimum $200 spend will receive a bonus $10 gift card in return (maximum spend of $7,500 per person). Customers who pay with WeChat Pay or AliPay qualify to receive a discount of ¥2018 Renminbi currency on gift card purchases. The numbers are in and reveal that this promotion was hugely successful! What’s the final tally? Hillcrest’s metrics showed an increase in gift card sales of over 1100% compared to February of the previous year.

Guest Experience isn’t the only place to pay with your smartphone. Sephora, Aritzia, Browns, Sporting Life, Nespresso and Chatime offer WeChat Pay and Ali Pay and/or Apple Pay.

Artizia has noted it also uses WeChat to answer customer inquiries. Hillcrest also offers online chat through its customer service platform, Kipsu. Customer service platforms like these offer a convenient alternative to phone calls and face-to-face interactions while garnering valuable customer insights. We think this is an interesting retail trend to watch.

Canadians are actively using mobile devices for research and shopping, and the popularity of tapping a card to pay now feels completely natural. Mobile pay is a strategic and logical next step, and Hillcrest and Oxford Properties are embracing this change.