Content about Operations research

By Keith Carpentier, keith.carpentier@tensator.com

Roseville, Calif. -- Retail life cycle price optimization solution-provider Revionics said it has partnered with K-VA-T Food Stores for a price optimization solution.

K-VA-T will deploy Revionics  Price Optimization and Revionics Promotion Optimization, which includes Revionics' category planning tools, weekly price maintenance capabilities and optimized prices across all pricing zones, each week.  

Bay Shore, N.Y. -- With a week to Black Friday, Lawrence, a Tensator Group Co., and a provider of queue management solutions, has issued its top five considerations for Black Friday crowd management.

By bearing the following considerations in mind and implementing simple queue management solutions, customers will be able to safely and efficiently move through checkout lines, according to Lawrence,  and retailers can rescue sales that would have been otherwise abandoned.

Roseville, Calif. -- Retail life cycle price optimization solution-provider Revionics said Wednesday that Gander Mountain Co. has selected the Revionics Price Optimization solution, which provides both base price management and price optimization.

The companies have entered into a two-year agreement. Revionics will help deploy these solutions throughout Gander Mountain's retail stores ensuring optimal monitoring, management and results.

Birmingham, Ala. -- Books-A-Million confirmed it has submitted a bid to purchase, among other things, the inventory, fixtures, equipment, and leasehold interests for 30 Borders locations. Under the proposed bid, Books-A-Million will assume the leases for these locations and continue to operate these stores. The move comes as Borders Group, after winning court approval, begins to liquidate its business.

Dallas -- Weis Markets has selected Retalix's Demand-Driven Replenishment solution to optimize its overall in-stock position and reduce excess inventory and out-of-stocks in its stores.

“We wanted a system that could provide demand-based forecasting and replenishment and assist us in optimizing our inventory. Retalix's Demand-Driven Replenishment solution was the ideal fit," said Bob Mawyer, VP of information technology at Weis Markets, Sunbury, Pa., which operates 164 stores.

Dallas -- Retalix announced Wednesday that c-store chain Family Express has selected the Retalix Demand-Driven Replenishment solution to reduce out-of-stocks, enhance the quality of its center-of-store product and fresh product offerings, and optimize its inventory position.

“Retalix’s Demand-Driven Replenishment solution offers one of the most robust, feature-rich systems on the market, and the depth of its intuitive analytics made our decision very easy,” said said Bill Nolan, VP marketing of Valparaiso, Ind.-based Family Express.

Atlanta -- RedPrairie Corp., a productivity solutions provider, announced that it has finalized the acquisition of SofTechnics, a leading provider of integrated retail enterprise solutions that has been serving customers for more than 20 years.     

By Richard P. Edwards, redwards@gordonbrothers.com

Real estate portfolio optimization has become standard practice for retailers and, in the current environment, store closings often outnumber openings. In many cases, closing stores is a proactive move. For instance, healthy retailers strengthen their positions by closing under-performing stores and relocating stores within a market is an ongoing process when retailers review leases up for renewal or look to improve their position in the area.