Stripe Takes Over Online Payments for Brown Thomas Arnotts in Major Irish Retail Tech Partnership
Brown Thomas Arnotts, Ireland's leading luxury department store group, has announced the migration of its entire online payment volume to Stripe, the Irish-founded payments technology company co-founded by Patrick and John Collison, in a partnership that will introduce Apple Pay and Klarna buy-now-pay-later services to the retailer's digital platforms and is expected to significantly reduce the revenue lost to failed card transactions.
Background
Brown Thomas Arnotts is the result of the merger of two of Ireland's most storied retail brands. Brown Thomas, founded in 1849 on Grafton Street in Dublin, has long been the country's premier luxury department store, carrying international designer brands alongside Irish designers and artisans. Arnotts, founded in 1843 on Henry Street, is one of the oldest department stores in the world and serves a broader market than its sister brand. Together, the two stores form the centrepiece of Irish luxury retail, attracting both domestic shoppers and international visitors.
The group's digital operations have grown significantly in recent years, driven by the acceleration of online shopping during and after the pandemic. The migration to Stripe represents a significant upgrade to the group's payments infrastructure, replacing a legacy system that had been in place for several years and that was increasingly unable to meet the demands of a modern digital retail operation.
Stripe, which was founded in 2010 by brothers Patrick and John Collison from Dromineer in County Tipperary, has grown into one of the world's most valuable private technology companies, with a valuation that has at times exceeded $100 billion. The company processes hundreds of billions of dollars in payments annually for businesses ranging from small startups to global corporations, and its partnership with Brown Thomas Arnotts is a significant addition to its Irish retail portfolio.
Key Developments
The partnership, announced on Friday, covers the retailer's websites and mobile applications across both the Brown Thomas and Arnotts brands. The migration introduces several new capabilities that were not available under the previous payments system. Apple Pay will be available to customers using Apple devices, providing a faster and more secure checkout experience. Klarna's buy-now-pay-later platform will allow customers to spread the cost of purchases over time, a feature that has become increasingly popular in the luxury retail sector.
Stripe will also implement its "Authorization Boost" and "Radar" features, which are designed to recover revenue lost to card declines. The company noted that in certain retail segments, failed transaction rates have historically been as high as 30%, and it expects to provide a "measurable lift" in card authorisation rates for Brown Thomas Arnotts. The Radar feature uses machine learning to distinguish between legitimate transactions and fraudulent ones, reducing the number of genuine purchases that are incorrectly declined.
Sara Esler, Head of Digital Product at Brown Thomas Arnotts, said that Stripe's technology and innovation pace were primary drivers for the selection. "We want to provide our customers with an effortless, elevated experience at every touchpoint, and Stripe's platform gives us the tools to do that," she said. "The ability to offer Apple Pay and Klarna, combined with Stripe's fraud prevention capabilities, will make a real difference to our customers' experience."
The partnership follows a previous development in May 2025 when Stripe replaced Brown Thomas as the title sponsor of the Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition, a move that signalled the company's growing engagement with Irish education and innovation.
Why It Matters
The Stripe-Brown Thomas Arnotts partnership is significant for several reasons. It demonstrates the growing maturity of Ireland's technology sector, with an Irish-founded company providing critical infrastructure for one of the country's most iconic retail brands. It also reflects the broader trend towards the consolidation of payments infrastructure around a small number of specialist providers, as retailers seek to reduce complexity and improve the customer experience.
The introduction of buy-now-pay-later services to the luxury retail sector is a notable development. BNPL has traditionally been associated with fast fashion and lower-price-point retail, but its extension to luxury goods reflects the changing demographics of luxury shoppers and the growing demand for payment flexibility across all market segments. The partnership with Klarna gives Brown Thomas Arnotts access to a customer base that might not otherwise consider purchasing luxury goods.
Local Impact
For shoppers at Brown Thomas on Grafton Street and Arnotts on Henry Street — two of the most visited retail destinations in Dublin city centre — the partnership will be most visible in the checkout experience. The introduction of Apple Pay will speed up transactions for customers using Apple devices, while the Klarna option will provide greater flexibility for those making larger purchases. The improved fraud prevention capabilities should also reduce the frustration of having legitimate transactions declined.
The partnership is also significant for the broader Irish retail sector, which has been navigating a challenging environment characterised by rising costs, changing consumer behaviour, and increasing competition from international online retailers. The investment by Brown Thomas Arnotts in its digital infrastructure signals confidence in the future of physical retail in Ireland, and the partnership with Stripe demonstrates that Irish technology companies are capable of competing at the highest level of the global payments market.
What's Next
The migration to Stripe is expected to be completed in the coming weeks, with the new payment options available to customers before the Christmas trading season. Brown Thomas Arnotts has indicated that it will continue to invest in its digital capabilities in 2027, with further enhancements to its websites and mobile applications planned. Stripe has indicated that it is exploring additional partnership opportunities with Irish retailers and that the Brown Thomas Arnotts deal is part of a broader strategy to expand its presence in the Irish market.
