Saks does analytics deal with First Insight

NEWYORK — New predictive analytics tools are being used at Saks Off 5th stores to help the company make smarter merchandising decisions.



The retailer is using tools provided by First Insight to generate insights from online customer engagement to help it make faster and more accurate buying and pricing decisions for new products, according to First Insight. The Pittsburgh-based company said the predictive analytics it generates will help the company reduce markdowns, out of stocks and mitigate the risks associated with new product launches.



“The First Insight solution is helping us predict how new products will perform,” said Rob Wallstrom, president of Saks discount division. “First Insight enables us to allocate our inventory by applying useful consumer-sourced information to offer our customers the best product available. Our trial with First Insight was successful, so we decided to move forward with the solution.”



In partnering with First Insight, Saks is seeking to gain strategic investment guidance on new fashion apparel products and design concepts by leveraging online social engagement tools to gather real-time preference, pricing and sentiment data on new products. This information is filtered through First Insight’s predictive analytic models to determine which products present the greatest opportunity.



“We are thrilled to be working with Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th. Our mission is to provide retailers with a fast, scalable solution that lets them leverage consumer feedback and predictive analytics to make new product decisions with confidence,” said Greg Petro, CEO and founder of First Insight. “Our solution will allow Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th to further differentiate itself from others in the outlet space.”