Profitmind has raised $9 million in a Series A funding round to grow its AI decision support platform for retail. The funding was led by Accenture Ventures and included new investor Thorndale Farm, Inc., along with returning investors such as Magarac Venture Partners, AI Fund led by Andrew Ng, and Lightscape Partners. Several individual investors also participated, including board member Mario Ciampi, who previously served as President of Disney Store and COO of The Children’s Place. The company hasn’t shared its valuation but aims to use the funds to help retailers make faster, smarter decisions amid increasing industry pressures.

Why Retail Decision-Making Is Under Pressure

Retailers today are overwhelmed with data but struggle with speed and clarity. Teams working on pricing, merchandising, planning, and marketing often spend days reconciling reports from different systems before they can act. In a market where conditions change daily, these delays become costly. Retailers need faster insights to stay competitive and responsive to customer needs.

Profitmind’s CEO, Dr. Mark Chrystal, explains that the challenge isn’t a lack of data but a lack of time and confidence in decision-making. The new funding will help scale a platform designed to replace manual work with clear, actionable recommendations aligned with financial goals. This allows retail teams to act quickly and confidently, improving their agility in a fast-changing industry.

Expanding Globally and Enhancing Product Capabilities

With the new investment, Profitmind plans to expand its platform to more retailers worldwide. The company also intends to develop new features and grow its team to support this growth. Recently, Profitmind partnered with Microsoft to list its platform on Microsoft Marketplace and Azure. This partnership makes it easier for enterprise retailers to adopt and integrate the platform into their existing systems.

Profitmind’s relationship with Accenture is also set to deepen, enabling larger retail transformation projects. This collaboration helps clients implement AI-driven decision layers without overhauling their core systems. Jill Standish, Accenture’s global retail lead, notes that AI is revolutionizing how retailers operate, especially in merchandising which is critical to retail success. She highlights that Profitmind’s AI bridges the gap between insights and action, providing clear recommendations that are easy to trust and execute.

Profitmind was founded in Pittsburgh by retail operators who wanted to cut down manual reporting and spreadsheet work. Its platform connects various strategic data sources into a unified system, helping teams make better decisions faster. This approach aims to simplify retail operations and enable businesses to respond more effectively to industry disruptions.

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