Leveraging pioneering technologies for successful data use
IT consultancy for the retail sector: digital solutions for retailers
In addition to traditional points of differentiation, such as price and quality, data will be a decisive success factor for retail businesses in the future. New technologies – including AI – open up a wealth of opportunities for retailers to make effective use of procurement, logistics and sales data. By offering IT consultancy, industry expertise and customized solutions, we can help you to master the digital transformation and secure your competitive position in the constantly shifting retail landscape.
The increasingly complex data landscape in both brick-and-mortar and online settings presents major challenges for the retail sector. However, retailers can turn the tsunami of information generated throughout the supply chain into a competitive edge – with the help of new technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT) and augmented reality (AR). These technologies can be deployed, for example, to automate processes or uncover new business models and assure their viability – from personalized customer offers to fully automated administrative processes.
“We assist our customers with every aspect of their journey to a successful digital future by combining our industry expertise with technological know-how.”
Marius Browarczyk Business Manager Retail at Lufthansa Industry Solutions
AI and IT consultancy for the entire retail value chain
Lufthansa Industry Solutions (LHIND) develops IT solutions for the entire retail supply chain.
The retail sector is constantly forced to contend with new requirements in various fields. For example, customers’ increasing expectations of their shopping experience give rise to tasks that require the use of digital solutions and detailed data analysis.
Retailers work with diverse and complex data – for example on stock levels, sales figures and their customers – which is often distributed across different systems. Real-time consolidation and analysis of this data is essential for companies to take well-founded and timely decisions.
Customers expect personalized shopping experiences, especially from online retailers, along with offers tailored to their purchase behavior. However, brick-and-mortar retail is also subject to increased expectations for fast and accurate services.
Heterogeneous process landscapes that arose in the past feature manual work steps. This can make them inefficient, error-prone and unable to meet the demand for swift, data-driven decisions. By implementing process optimizations and automations, new technologies can unlock significant potential – in particular in relation to logistics, stock management and staff planning.
Ensuring seamless customer experiences across multiple sales channels involves integrating and synchronizing different data sources from online and offline channels.
Complex networks of branch stores and suppliers need efficient coordination based on modern solutions. This requires a transparent, quick-response control system for branch processes, supply chains and staff planning.
Competitive pressures are also forcing retailers to embrace new technologies like AI, intelligent process automation (IPA) and digital twins in order to remain competitive. However, for many retail companies, implementing new IT solutions presents major challenges.
With customized AI tools and comprehensive IT consultancy, we can help you to forge a successful digital future your retail business.
As an IT service provider with decades of experience, Lufthansa Industry Solutions offers far more than IT consultancy. We’ve developed standardized solutions for the retail sector – which we can tailor to your specific, unique requirements:
Retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) makes it possible to train large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT with a company’s internal data – such as product information, process descriptions and warehouse stock levels. By drawing on this knowledge base, our AI chatbot provides precise answers, tailored to your company, in real time.
We offer both standardized GenAI solutions, which can be implemented very swiftly, as well as individual, customized solutions.
A digital twin is a virtual depiction of a branch store, based on real-time data and 3D models. Shelf layouts, product placements, stock levels, customer flows – and much more information besides – can be visualized dynamically in the virtual model of the branch. The digital twin assists with day-to-day operations as well as strategic decision-making, thereby helping to optimize planning and management while boosting customer satisfaction.
Potential use cases:
The digital twin can perform various activities based on historical data, including:
Providing visual depictions of reports on stores’ sales data, including with products highlighted in color on shelves
Visualizing the energy consumption of electrical devices based on sensor data
Highlighting in the virtual branch model which areas are particular targets for theft
Comparing sales of two products, highlighting their shelf placement, different branch stores, regions, etc.
These insights make it possible to derive measures to improve store performance.
Based on real-time data, the digital twin can perform a range of tasks, including:
Identifying how busy the check-out area is by examining motion data from cameras – and suggest opening another check-out if necessary
Sounding an alarm if sensors in a refrigerated area detect a critical temperature fluctuation
Triggering automated replenishment orders based on real-time inventory data
Serving as a virtual ticketing system to locate current employee tasks or damage reports in the virtual branch model and document their progress
This information makes it possible to improve the efficiency of day-to-day store operations.
The digital twin can be used to simulate store reorganization by moving individual elements within the model. By applying data from past customer flow analyses, the virtual model can depict the impact of changing store layout on customer movements.
We’ve created Shape (Semantic Hybrid Algorithm for Personalized Engagement) – an intelligent, AI-based recommendation system specifically developed for B2C retail – with the aim of boosting customer satisfaction and retention.
Unlike traditional recommendation systems, Shape records explicit shopping habits while also leveraging the abilities of language models to understand customers’ preferences and interests, including in written communication, feedback and reviews. Drawing on this additional information enriches recommendations and integrates up-and-coming trends at an early stage. This way, Shape generates personalized product recommendations and tailored product proposals – while continuously learning to make its recommendations more relevant. Of course, you can also integrate this AI-powered recommendation tool into your omni-channel strategy in order to provide a consistent and personalized customer experience across all communication channels.
In the retail sector, processes are often highly complex and business-critical. IT landscapes that arose in the past and manual work steps lead to errors and inefficiencies. We analyze your processes and advise you on suitable technologies and tools – because, in addition to our retail expertise, we have extensive technical know-how in relation to process mining, robotic process automation (RPA), intelligent process automation (IPA) and artificial intelligence.
We’ll work with you to develop customized, scalable automation solutions for your head office, brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce activities – from optimizing inventory management and warehouse processes to automating customer interactions and supply chain management.
Potential use cases:
Our standard solution Smart Document Orchestrator (SDO) automates the recording, extraction and processing of documents from different input channels. By combining optical character recognition (OCR) and generative AI, the Smart Document Orchestrator is able not only to extract text from documents but also to identify contextual links and process relevant information in a targeted manner. The SDO can be integrated seamlessly into your existing infrastructure and is also available as an AI-as-a-Service (AIaaS) solution.
The Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) system is designed to identify and manage potential hazards in food production and processing. Our intelligent HACCP solution automates and digitalizes the entire process – from documenting cleaning activities to monitoring and evaluation. It ensures end-to-end documentation, high transparency in maintenance and cleaning processes, and thereby ensures that you meet stringent hygiene standards. At the same time, it reduces the manual input required and optimizes internal processes.
The fashion industry will soon be required to implement the digital product passport (DPP) following its adoption by the European Commission. From mid-2027, textile companies will have to produce a product passport for each individual item. The DPP will provide consumers with information on the materials, suppliers and production sites involved in the product’s manufacturing as well as its carbon footprint.
We’ve developed a user-friendly application specifically to assist the textile industry in implementing the requirements of the digital product passport. You can transfer all product data to the platform automatically via an API – and your suppliers can also enter data directly. Our DPP solution enables you to implement statutory requirements swiftly and offer your customers genuine added value. From the consumer’s perspective, the DPP provides product information in a clear, easy-to-understand and visually appealing format, making it quick and convenient for your customers to find information about your products’ sustainability.
IT consultancy from LHIND: expertise and AI for your retail success
By choosing LHIND as their partner, retail companies benefit from customized, future-proof IT solutions based on long-standing expertise and state-of-the-art technologies. With our IT consultancy in the retail sector, we offer far more than standardized packages:
We offer customized consultancy and implementation, including specifically configured tools – precisely tailored to your company’s needs.
Cutting-edge solutions – such as retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), process automation, AI and digital twins – make it possible to apply complex data in an efficient manner. Innovative IT solutions help to optimize store processes, administrative processes, sales strategies and customer experiences.
We provide assistance throughout the entire process – from analysis to designing solutions through to implementation and operational management. Our attention is squarely focused on long-term optimization and efficiency enhancements.
We develop solutions that can be swiftly adapted to new market requirements and trends to put retailers in a future-proof position. We facilitate flexible integration of external data sources and easy expandability with modular, reusable architectures.
Would you like to find out more about our IT and AI solutions for the retail sector?
