Patent ID: 7386519
Filing Date: 2008-06-10
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
1. A computer-implemented method for forming a plurality of stores into a plurality of store clusters based on price optimization, and re-optimizing prices based on the plurality of store clusters, comprising: collecting store specific information from a plurality of stores; optimizing prices for a plurality of products for each individual store of the plurality of stores, and wherein the price optimization uses demand coefficients, cost coefficients and optimization rules; creating a plurality of store clusters from the plurality of stores based on the closeness of the optimized prices of the plurality of products for each individual store, based on store specific information, and based on demand group structure of the plurality of products, and wherein the demand group structure of the plurality of products is based on substitutable products; re-optimizing prices for the plurality of products for at least one of the plurality of store clusters, wherein the re-optimizing of prices uses demand coefficients, cost coefficients and optimization rules, and wherein the re-optimizing of prices is implemented on a computer; and providing the re-optimized prices to the at least one of the plurality of store clusters; and wherein the closeness of the optimized prices of the plurality of products is computed using a distance equation: wherein s1 and s2 are stores in the at least one of the plurality of store clusters, and wherein x and y are two of the optimized prices.