Join Nicholas Wegman, Ph.D., Senior Director of Artificial Intelligence and Alex Barnes, Senior Director of Product Management, in a three-part series that demystifies the science behind Artificial Intelligence (AI) and reveals how it can increase your margin. Taking an insightful journey into its history and present-day market trends, they will discuss why AI may—or may not—represent an ideal solution for every business.
As we continue transitioning toward a post-pandemic economy, mid-tier fashion stands out as one retail sector that is irrevocably changed. It's clear now that fashion retail will never return to a pre-COVID sales mix dominated by in-store purchases, nor are we ever going to see the levels of online sales that occurred during the height of the lockdowns.
Among the highlights of our most recent retail trade event appearances—NRF in New York and RILA LINK in Orlando—were our well-received feature presentations, spotlighting one of our major success stories among national retailers, our partnership with Walgreens.
While it’s fair to say there’s plenty of disagreement among many issues these days, most consumers—across all income levels—generally agree on something: a sense of pessimism surrounding our current economy. So says the Index of Consumer Sentiment, a widely regarded metric from the Surveys of Consumers, as tabulated by the University of Michigan.
During our very worthwhile appearance at NRF just a few weeks ago, quite a few questions from visitors to our booth revolved around the ongoing challenges affecting retail replenishment. Nobody needs to belabor the problem—our post-pandemic economy is still plagued by unwieldy supply chain disruptions, leaving retail customers regularly disappointed with empty shelves—leaving them little choice but to consider competing stores (or online options) for everyday items they rely upon.
One highlight of NRF 2023 was our well-received co-presentation with Walgreens Group VP Andy Kettlewell, joining our CEO, Sivakumar Lakshmanan to discuss Walgreens’ landmark AI demand planning transformation—serving 9 million daily customers’ health and wellness needs across almost 9,000 stores nationwide.
For those outside the grocery industry, direct store delivery (DSD) is a distribution model used by manufacturers/CPGs that entails delivering products directly to retail store shelves. This model is extremely conducive for perishable food categories. During your typical grocery shopping, you may notice that store employees these days do relatively little replenishment in the aisles.
Shopping—as we once knew it—has changed forever. And with it, the art and science of providing the right product at the right place and time has become even more complicated for retailers everywhere. In an ever-competitive retail landscape, customers—often impatient with chronic out-of-stocks and other supply chain disruptions—now expect shopping experiences that are more unified, personalized, and address their immediate needs.
A replenishment system's purpose is to place the right amount of inventory at the right place at the right time. It's a basic problem yet requires complex execution. Over the years, product explosion, location additions and contractions, omnichannel shopping, and fulfillment option expansion have made replenishment challenging.
