Patent ID: 7979299

Claim:
A method of optimizing scheduling of markdown pricing for one or more related items at a plurality of retail sites, the method comprising: for each retail site in the plurality of retail sites, identifying a type of related items based, at least in part on, whether markdown schedules for individual items would be substantially similar if optimized separately; computing, with a digital processing apparatus, a metric I′ that is a ratio of a current inventory of the type of related items at that retail site and a number of the type of related items expected to be sold by that retail site; determining which retail sites from the plurality of retail sites have similar metrics, the metrics identifying which retail sites are equally close to selling out the type of related items by one of, percentage-wise and optimal gross margin, given a current price of the type of related items; identifying one or more pricing rules utilized at the retail sites, where the one or more pricing rules include at least one of a markdown calendar for each retail site, a promotion type during which a markdown may be scheduled to occur, a promotion date of a markdown, a schedule of accepted markdown dates, or a pricing ladder for permissible markdown prices; combining the plurality of retail sites into a group as a function of the retail sites having similar metrics and one or more pricing rules utilized at the retail sites; computing, with the digital processing apparatus, a markdown schedule for the retail sites that make up the group; displaying on a display screen of the digital processing apparatus the group markdown schedule; and applying the group markdown schedule to the plurality of retail sites of the group to optimize scheduling of markdown pricing.