WSJ: Retailers Look to Fix the Forecast & Close Gaps with Analytics
July 13, 2023
An article published in The Wall Street Journal – Retailers Are Trying to Fix Their Supply-Chain Forecasts – took a look at how businesses are focusing on analytics, technologies, and data to optimize inventory management. “Retailers are turning to new technology and greater use of data across their supply chains… The efforts are aimed at …
June WeatherCall Report: Summer Sales Stall as U.S. Sees Coolest June Since 2009
July 7, 2023
Planalytics released its June 2023 WeatherCall report showing that demand for summer season products and services suffered due to cooler temperatures across much of the country, outside of Northwest, Western North Central, and parts of Texas. An example of the regional variance in terms of consumer demand impact: Shorts were up by a healthy 30% …
Optimize Inventories, Personalize Shopping & More with AI/ML-Driven Predictive Analytics
June 23, 2023
Winsight Grocery Business reports that “Artificial intelligence will create $113 billion in operational efficiency and new revenue, and nearly three-quarters of grocery technology executives believe AI will be incorporated into most of their software by 2025, according to a report by data analytics firm Grocery Doppio. The study of new technologies, conducted in partnership with …
After a dreary start to the spring season, UK retailers are seeing stronger footfall and sales on sunnier days and warmer temperatures.
June 22, 2023
In an article entitled Retailers Should Make Hay While the Sun Shines on Shoppers the author notes that Next is raising its sales forecasts after a strong start to its second quarter. “Part of the reason for the outperformance is the weather. After a cold, wet April, the sun shone in May and June has …
Forbes: Weather Is Hurting Retail Sales
June 9, 2023
“The consequences of epic weather events, including record-breaking droughts, floods and temperature fluctuations, are being recorded in shopper traffic and retail sales.” Over the last several weeks many retailers have called out the weather as they reported quarterly results. Forbes calls highlights some examples in an article entitled Weather Is Hurting Retail Sales. These 4 …
Strategies for a Successful Back-to-School Season
June 6, 2023
Memorial Day weekend has come and gone, and the core spring selling season is fading into the background. For many retail segments, the focus has turned to making the most of opportunities in the upcoming Back-to-School (BTS) period. A Retail TouchPoints article – The ABCs of a Successful Back-to-School Shopping Season – calls out three …
Look at Localized Market Factors to Mitigate Demand Latency Issues
May 26, 2023
Forbes covered “the dark clouds hang low over multiple retailers threatening profitability” in an article entitled The Demand Latency Hangover. The article highlights the disconnect, due to timing, between shifting consumer purchasing patterns and a retailer’s supply chain. “Using conventional demand processes, the time to translate market demand to replenishment can be weeks, even months. …
Retailers Point to Unfavorable Weather Impacts in Q1 Results
May 25, 2023
A slowing economy, a more cautious customer, and post-pandemic spending shifts were all concerns raised by retailers in the last couple of weeks as earnings were released. These trends have hurt some retailers more than others and another key element of uncertainty and sales volatility – the weather – played into disappointing Q1 results for …
Descriptive, Predictive & Prescriptive: Understand & Optimize Performance
May 19, 2023
How Analytics Around a Core Consumer Demand Variable Help Businesses Understand & Optimize Performance Harvard Business Review (HRB) published a useful overview on how advanced analytics “can help companies solve a host of management problems, including those related to marketing, sales, and supply chain operations, which can lead to a sustainable competitive advantage”. The article …
Integrate this critical consumer demand factor to improve retail planning and replenishment.
May 15, 2023
Retailers and other consumer-focused businesses need to consider many factors when forecasting consumer demand. Everything from broader macroeconomic conditions (like employment levels and inflation) to buying trends (is a product’s sales growth accelerating or turning negative) to the type of product (is it a staple item or discretionary purchase) play a role in determining a …