Berlin, Germany – 22 July 2025 – “Most retailers are stuck in a loop: they crawl competitor prices, adjust based on rules, and repeat.”

Amidst rising concerns over inflation, tariffs, return rates, and supply chain pressure, the complexity of pricing decisions has continued to grow. This increasing complexity has highlighted a fundamental flaw in the strategies of many retailers: the over-reliance on manual, rule-based processes. Fortunately, the emergence of predictive AI has delivered a solution.

Our CEO and Founder, Felix Hoffmann, explored this topic in his recent interview with Tradebyte’s TB.FRONTROW, filmed live at ECD Munich. In the episode, Felix discusses the limitations of static pricing strategies and why more retailers are turning to predictive, AI-powered solutions to adapt in real time.

“7Learnings is really an AI solution where you can put in your targets as a retailer or as a brand. What do you want to achieve? How much do you want to grow? Then we help retailers get to that growth in the most efficient way.”

Watch the full TB.FRONTROW episode

 

From rules-based to outcome-driven pricing

According to Felix, up to 95% of pricing decisions are still rule-based. However, with the growing complexity of channels, costs, and customer expectations, that model is breaking down fast.

“AI reintroduces simplicity. You care for the overall achievement of your targets, and AI will help you get closer there.”

This marks a fundamental shift from micromanaging product-level prices to trusting machine learning models that maximize margin, revenue, or sell-through, depending on the objective.

The cost of competitor matching

One of the biggest mistakes retailers make? “The blind follow the blind,” Felix states. Most retailers rely heavily on competitive pricing. However, when everyone is copying each other, no one is optimizing efficiently.

This reactive approach has led many businesses into a race to the bottom, especially in tough market conditions. Predictive pricing, by contrast, allows retailers to account for current factors like inventory levels, return rates, and tariffs, and make proactive decisions that align with broader goals.

Increasing market challenges

With increasing challenges such as sudden inflation or shifting tarifs, AI-enhanced pricing is one of the fastest levers retailers can pull to protect margins and profitability.

“You can only know the optimal decision if you make a prediction upfront,” Felix emphasized.

What’s next for 7Learnings?

With a recent investment round featured in Handelsblatt, 7Learnings is expanding rapidly. Already a major player in the DACH region, the company is setting its sights on Northern Europe and North America.

Read Tradebyte’s official blog

About Tradebyte: Tradebyte is a leading platform integrator in Europe, dedicated to helping businesses succeed in the Fashion & Lifestyle sectors. As a subsidiary of Zalando, it provides SaaS solutions that simplify expanding product portfolios by connecting businesses with a network of 1,000+ brands, 90+ retailers, and 30+ partners, offering expertise in integrations, logistics, fulfilment, and data optimisation.