The Splitit Ltd (ASX: SPT) share price is pushing higher on Wednesday morning.
In early trade, the buy now pay later (BNPL) provider's shares are up 2.5% to 60 cents.
Why is the Splitit share price rising today?
The catalyst for the Splitit share price rise on Wednesday has been the release of an announcement this morning.
That announcement reveals that Splitit is following the lead of industry giant Afterpay Ltd (ASX: APT) by launching in-store in the United States and globally.
According to the release, the company will launch Splitit InStore in August, allowing shoppers to pay in instalments using Splitit at participating merchants.
Splitit InStore's initial focus is on larger value purchases such as home furnishings, jewellery, luxury retail and sporting goods. It has signed up a number of notable merchants, which are estimated to add over US$1 billion in combined addressable sales volume. These include La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries, Gem Shopping Network, PROCAM, Fabergé, KEF and Aftershock PC Australia.
Splitit's CEO, Brad Paterson, commented: "The recent shift to online has increased shopper expectations of flexible payment options at checkout. As we see a return to in-store spending in many countries, the number one request of our customers has been to provide an omnichannel experience."
"Splitit InStore was developed with our target shopper in mind, empowering our merchant customers to initiate a seamless instalment payment offering that allows shoppers to pay in a frictionless way. The addition of Apple Pay and Google Pay adds to this by creating an even simpler payment experience," concluded Mr Paterson.
What impact will this have on its sales?
Splitit has warned that the short-term economic materiality of the launch of Splitit InStore is unknown. This is due to the contingent nature of results that may be generated.
However, management considers the launch of Splitit InStore to be of strategic significance due to the importance of the in-store channel. It also notes that it widens Splitit's addressable market opportunity.
The Splitit share price is down 55% since the start of the year.
