BRINGING SCIENCE TO SALES RESULTS; OPTIMIZATION SOFTWARE CALLS FOR RETAILERS TO TRUST IN TECHNOLOGY TO FORECAST DEMAND AND PREDICT TRENDS.

Daily News Record, February, 2005 by Millstein, Marc

Byline: Marc Millstein

NEW YORK -- It may have appeared to the consumer that sales were endlessly popping up during the 2004 holidays, but what they didn't know is that stores had used retail technology to plan those sales well before the season even began.

Thanks to the increasing use of elements of optimization software, retailers are sleeping better at night. Optimization tools are designed to suggest best prices, determine when and how much to mark down product, and to fine-tune merchandise assortment and shelf-space allocation. For apparel retailers particularly, solutions that limit markdowns hold significant potential to enhance profits, just as tools that maximize shelf-space allocation -- and sales per stockkeeping unit -- can lift the...

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