LS&Co. has launched the Business Optimization Of Shipping and Transport engine, or BOOST, which leverages data, AI and machine learning to choose the best fulfillment option for both the customer and LS&Co.’s bottom line. The in-house technology is part of LS&Co.’s digital transformation journey designed to support its business strategies, including growing its DTC business as a percentage of overall revenue.
“What BOOST is optimized to do is fulfill ecommerce orders more effectively,” said Louis DiCesari, Global Head of Data, Analytics, and AI at LS&Co. in a statement. “When somebody goes online to make a purchase, we have distribution centers where we keep inventory specifically for those orders. One of the things we can do with BOOST is broaden that search for available product to include stores and allow the engine to choose the best fulfillment option for both the consumer and our bottom line.”
BOOST locates items across LS&Co. stores and warehouses to ensure they’re available to shoppers. The software is designed to consider all elements of the process, from shipping to packing to labor, in order to enable optimized decision-making that saves time and money. It also can eliminate split shipments to benefit both the customer and the retailer.
“If a consumer orders three things from Levi’s and gets three packages from Levi’s, it’s a poor experience for the customer and a bigger strain on resources,” said DiCesari. BOOST’s AI calculations will help the company reduce shipping impact without shifting the burden to the customer.
Advertisement
The process is entirely automated, which enables LS&Co.’s teams to focus on other initiatives. LS&Co. also has been working to expand BOOST’s capacity to widen its positive impact. While the system currently accounts for 40% of eligible ecommerce orders, it’s expected to process 100% of eligible U.S. orders by Black Friday 2022.
