Future Group partners with o9 Solutions to bolster retailing with AI

Consumer goods and retail business conglomerate Future Group has partnered with Dallas, Texas based decision management software provider o9 Solutions to fuel its retail 3.0 journey, according to a joint statement on Thursday.

“We look forward to a long-term partnership that will enable Future Group to increase revenues and reduce costs while improving customer service and enhancing employee productivity,” Chakri Gottemukkala, co-founder and CEO at o9 Solutions said.

The Kishore Biyani-led group will deploy o9 artificial intelligence-enabled platforms to drive forecasting and replenishment activities for its different retail format stores in India, according to the statement.

The solutions are expected to integrate demand planning or forecasting, replenishment planning and sales and operations planning at Future Group’s 1,500 stores across 450 cities.

“We’re excited to bring o9’s next-generation platform capabilities to support our planning across all time horizons, from long-term strategic planning to mid-term, to short-term, all in one integrated platform,” Future Group Director Vivek Biyani said.

The partnership will utilise both internal and external demand drivers to plan for promotions, using machine learning algorithms and create a demand forecast in Future Group’s retail ecosystem, the statement said.

Read: Retailers must digitalise supply chain to serve tech savvy customers: Deloitte

On replenishment planning, the o9 platform will generate requirements of Future Group’s distribution centres, consumer packaged goods (CPG) as well as of Future Consumer Limited, the statement added.

While the textbook definition of retail refers to the sale of products to its end-users and consumers, CPG refers to a broad spectrum of manufacturers, sellers, and marketers of packaged physical goods used by consumers and sold through a retailer.

The o9 platform will also enable a digital integrated business planning (IBP) process where both vendors and Future Group’s CPG will be able to validate their plan against the overall annual numbers in the platform, the statement added.

Oil to telecom major Reliance Industries is in final talks to buy the retail businesses of Future Group, Times of India had reported late June, citing sources.