The adoption of artificial intelligence in Polish enterprises is growing at a double-digit pace. Contributing to this trend are companies like Occubee, which is developing a SaaS platform for sales forecasting and inventory management in retail. Its CEO, Kamil Folkert PhD, emphasizes that the key to successful AI implementation in business lies in combining technology with human collaboration..
December is a time for reflections, and this past year seems especially significant for you – if only because Occubee became an independent company in February. Did you feel then that you had caught the wind in your sails?
It was definitely a pivotal moment in our history. Spinning off Occubee S.A. gave us not only greater autonomy in decision-making but also strengthened our team’s identity. As a result, the organizational culture we had been nurturing for some time truly began to flourish and fully manifest itself in our daily operations and interactions.
And what has changed on the business level?
A strategic direction we took – and one that has significantly shaped where we are today and how we operate – was narrowing our focus to specific industries for which we tailor our product. We chose fashion, FMCG, and home & decor. This allowed us to gain a much deeper understanding of the pain points and needs specific to these sectors, and to adapt our solutions to effectively address their unique challenges and expectations. As a result, we deliver even greater business value and truly fulfill our role as a growth partner.
Of course, none of this would be possible without our clients. We’re fortunate to work with companies that aspire to be innovators and are eager to leverage the latest technologies, including artificial intelligence. They do so in a responsible, thoughtful way – with a strong focus on maximizing return on investment. And they’re ready to engage in the complex, collaborative process required to successfully implement and adopt a solution of Occubee’s caliber. That’s why we’re especially pleased to see this group continually growing. This year, we’ve been joined by companies such as Homla and Artimod, the owner of the Venezia brand.
You mentioned that you act as a growth partner for your clients. How does that work in practice? What can companies considering working with you expect?
At Occubee, we help companies uncover new opportunities through data. In addition to offering a technologically advanced yet user-friendly SaaS product, we provide our clients with knowledge and insights hidden within their data. This wouldn’t be possible without the broad range of specialized expertise within our team – which includes professionals in retail, Data Science and Machine Learning, Big Data, Cloud, software engineering, and more.
Occubee optimizes core business processes, directly impacting profitability. For example, we help reduce so-called dead stock in warehouses, minimize lost sales due to out-of-stocks in stores, and maximize full-price sell-through. By doing so, we actively support our clients in their growth, the development of competitive advantages, and the strengthening of their market position.
What kind of feedback are you getting from the clients you’re currently working with?
Clients in the fashion industry are currently using the sales potential forecasting and store inventory management module. Thanks to Occubee, they were able to move away from allocation packages and start managing store inventory replenishment based on the individual sales potential of each product in each store. Their trust in us and the tool is clearly reflected in their decision to fully automate the generation and sharing of orders with the warehouse. Moreover, they have expressed the need for further support in additional processes, primarily in planning seasonal collections, and are willing to engage in R&D efforts aimed at expanding Occubee’s capabilities even further.
And what about companies from industries other than fashion?
In the home decor sector, companies using modules for managing store and warehouse inventory highlight the benefits of their synergy. Replenishment and Demand Management enable them to comprehensively optimize supply chain processes, which in turn increases inventory turnover, frees up working capital, and relieves experts from tedious, repetitive tasks.
In November, during one of the industry conferences, I had a conversation on stage with Michał Mazur, a representative of Lisek.app, an FMCG business operating in the q-commerce model. He mentioned that Occubee allowed them to increase product availability, reduce the capital tied up in inventory, and decrease food waste. The system also enabled extensive automation, allowing the same team to handle four times the number of suppliers they managed before implementing our platform.
It all sounds very encouraging and definitely motivates further development, in which, alongside your clients, investors are also part of the journey.
Yes. For almost two years now, we have been supported by Warsaw Equity Group. This collaboration has many dimensions that definitely go beyond the financial sphere. The representatives of the fund helped us, among other things, to define the development path of Occubee, and their suggestions contributed to significant adjustments in our strategy. They opened doors to their network, which has led to new contacts, partnerships, and conversations that enable us to achieve our goals faster. Being part of the community built by WEG also gives us the opportunity to learn from others and share our own experiences. At the last WEG conference, I had the chance to speak to the audience about my journey to becoming a leader and what that means to me. What I particularly value in our relationship with WEG is the complete openness – we share both the good and the challenging moments, the successes and the failures.
Did something happen at Occubee in 2024 that you are truly proud of?
I am proud of the way our team has come together around shared values and goals. Since the inception of Occubee, we’ve come a long way, often facing bumpy roads along the way. Today, we have clearly defined values that serve as our guiding principles. And while it may sound like a cliché, over the past few months, I have repeatedly seen that these values are truly alive within the team. I deeply appreciate that.
So, what’s on the horizon? What are your plans for 2025?
Our priority remains delivering the greatest business value to our clients. We also plan to develop additional Occubee modules to better support supply chain processes, including inventory management and stock replenishment for stores and warehouses. I hope we can expand our collaboration with local partners, including Microsoft, and increase Occubee’s exposure in international markets.
Can you, in the end, share the most important lesson about life or business that you’ve learned over the past year?
Fortune favors the persistent.
The interview was published on the Forbes.pl portal (the text is in Polish).
