Provides AI-driven Solutions that Optimize Merchandising for the Retail Industry
Impact Analytics, Inc. (“Impact” or the “Company”), a leading provider of AI-driven SaaS solutions for planning & merchandising within the retail industry, announced today that it has closed an $11 million growth financing led by Argentum Capital Partners IV, L.P. In connection with the financing, Walter H. Barandiarán, Managing Partner at Argentum, has joined Impact’s Board of Directors.
Impact’s industry-leading, next-generation AI-driven technology platform powers SaaS solutions aimed at optimizing the forecasting, planning and merchandising functions for retailers and consumer packaged goods (“CPG”) manufacturers. As the industry currently relies on spreadsheets and legacy manual systems for these key decisions, retailers have an opportunity to increase sales and margins by utilizing Impact’s solutions.
The Company’s SmartSuite and Forecasting products for Assortment planning, Allocation optimization, Markdown optimization and Promotion planning are deployed at leading retailers, including Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger, Puma, JoAnn and Belk. Several large private equity firms are actively encouraging their portfolio companies in the retail sector to adopt Impact’s solutions.
“We believe that smart decisions are made when humans and machines work together. We have built best-in-class decisioning systems that unlock the power of artificial intelligence for our customers, in easy-to-use workflows,” said Prashant Agrawal, Impact’s CEO.
The Company’s decisioning systems also enhance retailers’ sustainability efforts by helping them make more precise merchandising and allocation decisions, reducing waste and their carbon footprint.
“A recent Gartner report concluded that retailers need to adopt AI in order to improve and enhance assortment and pricing optimization. As investors with extensive experience in retail tech, Argentum has seen the COVID pandemic accelerate the need for artificial intelligence and data-based decisioning in the retail industry,” said Walter Barandiarán, Argentum’s Managing Partner. “Brands and retailers have been forced to re-think overnight their approach to planning and merchandising, as substantial sales volume moved swiftly from bricks & mortar to online commerce. Brands and retailers must now and in the future make smart, data-based decisions in real-time about inventory, pricing and promotion. Impact is well-positioned to fulfill this market need,” Walter added.
“We look forward to working with Walter and Argentum and leveraging their domain knowledge and experience investing in retail tech. Argentum is known for their expertise in partnering with bootstrapped companies to accelerate growth, and with their investment, we will build our sales team, expand our product development team and increase the market reach of our products,” added Prashant.
