Gartner | Market Guide for Retail Forecasting, Allocation and Replenishment Solutions

Retailers are rethinking how they forecast demand, position inventory and replenish across stores, distribution centers and digital channels.

Gartner Market Guide examines the market for retail forecasting, allocation and replenishment solutions for short life cycle products, including evolving workflows and the emerging role of AI agents. 

Board is named as a Representative Vendor in the report, with Board Allocation and Replenishment Solution listed in the Vendor Selection table.

From fragmented processes to connected inventory decisions 

When forecasting, allocation and replenishment operate in separate processes, it can be harder to coordinate inventory decisions across the network. The report describes how retailers are looking for solutions that connect these workflows, improve visibility and help teams respond to changing demand and operating conditions. 

Gartner Market Guide provides an overview of the market, its dynamics and the capabilities of representative vendors. It is designed to help technology leaders understand an evolving market and the solutions available within it. 

What the report covers 

• How retail forecasting, allocation and replenishment solutions are evolving for short life cycle products 

• Why retailers are seeking more integrated planning workflows 

• How AI and AI agents are entering retail planning 

• Where governed automation can support planning teams 

• What to consider when evaluating solutions for inventory planning 

Explore Gartner view of the changing retail planning landscape and consider how connected forecasting, allocation and replenishment could support coordinated inventory decisions across your retail network. 

_{Gartner, Market Guide for Retail Forecasting, Allocation and Replenishment Solutions: Short Life Cycle Products, By Jonathan Kutner, 16 March 2026. Gartner is a trademark of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates. Gartner does not endorse any company, vendor, product or service depicted in its publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s business and technology insights organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this publication, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.}