CQuotient, With $3M from Bain, Looks to Help Retailers Adjust to Customers’ Buying Behavior

to retailers and we have the same ethos. Too often, analytics companies produce “insights” and some poor decision-maker at the customer has to scratch their head and figure out what to do with the insight. CQuotient’s focus is concrete, actionable recommendations so it is easy for the recipient to act on it.

But, our experience means that we have also seen the limits to the approach ProfitLogic and other firms have taken (using only sales and inventory data). By focusing on customer-level data from day one at CQuotient, we are opening up a whole new set of value for retailers. And by leveraging new developments in cloud computing, we are able to process the huge quantities of data required to truly unlock this value.

X: In basic terms, how is the landscape of retail optimization evolving? What are the big trends you are riding? And who are the established companies to be disrupted (e.g., IBM, Oracle, SAP, Amazon)?

RR: The leading edge of the retail optimization landscape (particularly for bricks-and-mortar retail) is the move towards more granular data, i.e., customer transactions. We have squeezed out a lot of value from high-level sales and inventory data. There’s not much juice left. The next chunk of value will come from analyzing customer-level data.

The biggest trend we’re riding is customer-centricity—a focus on what your customers want, and then aligning everything you do around that. The retail world is moving to a “share of wallet” game and if you don’t infuse customer-centricity into everything you do, you will likely not survive.

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Author: Gregory T. Huang

Greg is a veteran journalist who has covered a wide range of science, technology, and business. As former editor in chief, he overaw daily news, features, and events across Xconomy's national network. Before joining Xconomy, he was a features editor at New Scientist magazine, where he edited and wrote articles on physics, technology, and neuroscience. Previously he was senior writer at Technology Review, where he reported on emerging technologies, R&D, and advances in computing, robotics, and applied physics. His writing has also appeared in Wired, Nature, and The Atlantic Monthly’s website. He was named a New York Times professional fellow in 2003. Greg is the co-author of Guanxi (Simon & Schuster, 2006), about Microsoft in China and the global competition for talent and technology. Before becoming a journalist, he did research at MIT’s Artificial Intelligence Lab. He has published 20 papers in scientific journals and conferences and spoken on innovation at Adobe, Amazon, eBay, Google, HP, Microsoft, Yahoo, and other organizations. He has a Master’s and Ph.D. in electrical engineering and computer science from MIT, and a B.S. in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.