Date of Graduation

5-2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Marketing

Advisor/Mentor

Geiger, Craig

Abstract

I assumed the role of a Merchandising Operations Intern, working directly under the guidance of Planner Candace Gooding in D71. Given the prominence of the furniture and mattresses department in the online retail space, due to the limitations of in-store infrastructure for large products, our focus within D71 is centered on expanding the digital business. Over the past couple of years, Walmart has strategically shifted towards launching higher-end retail items, particularly in the realm of stylish furniture, bolstered by robust marketing initiatives. Although historical performance, seasonality, and price elasticity have traditionally guided forecasting for these items, the oversight of additional promotional support, such as influencer-promoted items like Drew Barrymore's furniture line, has resulted in inventory forecasting discrepancies. These discrepancies subsequently led to Out of Stock (OOS) issues.

The project prompt that was assigned to me is as follows: “Develop a data-driven model that can help quantify sales unit increases from marketing promotions early enough to react accordingly and have sufficient inventory to meet forecasted demand. By having a more methodical and data-driven approach, we hoped to reduce risk by having a more educated forecast while taking on a big bet item. As the model becomes more robust, we can also start using this to quantify if the marketing investment drives additional sales and profit, since ROI an optimal marketing mix is most important”. Due to D71’s reliance on Walmart’s online platform for the majority of sales, the data analyzed in the scope of this project focused solely on online sales.

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