dunnhumby, Aptaris enter strategic partnership

dunnhumby, a global customer science company, and Tampa, Fla.-based Aptaris, an enterprise marketing and promotions management company, announced a strategic partnership agreement that enables retailers to increase the relevance of national brand and private label offers made to their customers, resulting in improved sales and margins while boosting the efficiency of their merchandising and marketing operations.

“The new combined offering allows immediate access to dunnhumby’s data-driven customer intelligence,” said Tom O’Reilly, CEO, Aptaris. “Retailers will be able to determine instantaneously if a 50 percent discount will have greater impact on their category than a buy-one-get-one promotion. The higher awareness of financial impact deeply ingrained into the retailers’ existing processes will increase promotional funding and revenue.”

dunnhumby and Aptaris provide complementary software solutions that address the difficult challenge of planning and executing successful trade promotions, the companies said. dunnhumby offers optimization and analytics solutions to better plan and understand the impact of regular and promotional pricing, so retailers can make informed decisions that strengthen their brand and the value they deliver to shoppers. Meanwhile, Aptaris helps retailers streamline the complex processes involved in managing promotions, from vendor collaboration through advertising design and billing.

Under the new partnership, dunnhumby science will be integrated into the Aptaris solution, providing retailers with a single end-to-end promotions management solution, the companies stated. Created for retailers by retailers, Aptaris powered by dunnhumby will enable stakeholders in the promotions planning process to:

• Conduct “what-if” scenario planning in real time, and make choices about offer mechanics and marketing tactics based on proven demand science — all within the ad-planning interface
• Use accurate forecast data to negotiate smarter deals for trade funds — and then automate vendor accounting
• Improve internal team collaboration, from merchandisers and buyers through to marketing and advertising to finance
• Gain visibility into true margin potential, and customer response to promotions, for real understanding of bottom-line impact

“The dunnhumby philosophy is centered on helping organizations build long-term customer loyalty, and promotions play a key role in shoppers’ perception of value,” said Howard Langer, managing director, dunnhumby Price and Promotion. “This partnership demonstrates our continued investment in price and promotion technology solutions that give retailers the tools they need to be more successful. And these tools are just one component of dunnhumby’s broader ability to provide strategic support to retailers who need deeper insights into their shoppers and markets.”