dunnhumby Acquires KSS Retail

LONDON -- International marketing consultancy dunnhumby acquired KSS Retail, a provider of price modeling and optimization solutions.

For the past 20 years dunnhumby has worked with retailers, including Tesco, Shell and Kroger, to find buying patterns, the company said. This acquisition will combine dunnhumby's expertise with KSS Retail's price modeling and optimization solutions.

KSS Retail provides software that generates optimized prices based on consumer demand and that models and forecasts the effects of future pricing and promotional decisions for retailers in the grocery, drug, convenience, online and general retail segments. Current clients include Kroger, Sonae (Portugal), Raley's, McKesson, Associated Food Stores, Brookshire Brothers and Balls Food Stores. KSS Retail will operate as an independent business unit of dunnhumby and maintain its existing management structure. Over time, KSS Retail will bring elements of dunnhumby capability to the marketplace.

Kevin Sterneckert, research director at Boston-based AMR Research, said there is "fantastic potential in the combination of dunnhumby's thought-leading consumer marketing techniques and the proven demand sensing and shaping capabilities of software provided by KSS Retail.

"AMR sees this acquisition as market disrupting and will likely cause many software providers angst as they assess the potential strength this transaction represents," he said.

Lance Jacobs, chief executive officer of KSS Retail, said dunnhumby has a proven reputation in the retail industry for delivering actionable customer insights.

"By leveraging dunnhumby's expertise with our price optimization technology, we will be able to jointly bring unprecedented value to the retailer, manufacturer and the consumer," he said.

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