Methods and apparatus for inventory allocation and pricing

Abstract

The invention provides methods of, and systems for, optimizing the allocation of inventory to, and pricing of, goods sold by multiple retail sites, e.g., in a store, chain or other retail enterprise. Such a method includes generating a plurality of possible or 'candidate' allocations of a given inventory among the multiple retail sites. That inventory can be, for example, a supply of the same or like goods at a distribution center that serves the retail sites. Each candidate allocation comprises an assignment of a respective share of that inventory to each of the sites. For each of the candidate allocations, an optimal price of the goods at each of the retail sites is estimated. The optimal price is one that will return an optimal gross margin to the respective site, given its assignment of the respective share of the inventory for the particular candidate allocation. For each of the candidate allocations, a sum is determined of the optimal gross margins across all the retail sites. From substantially all possible allocations, the candidate allocation that results in a largest total optimal gross margin is efficiently chosen.