Apana Receives $60,000 Mitacs Grant

Apana receives a $60,000 Mitacs grant to develop machine-learning technologies to address supply chain challenges for small and medium-sized businesses.

Apana, a venture in incubation at Empowered Startups, has received an impressive $60,000 grant from the Mitacs Accelerate Program to hire four intern students from the Department of Decision Sciences at MacEwan University in Edmonton, Canada. The partnership will support Apana in developing its proprietary supply chain forecasting and inventory management platform as the startup launches its inaugural product.

The State of the Canadian SME Retail Market

In Canada, there are over a million retail establishments, with 97.4% of the industry being made up of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The market is extremely fragmented and competitive, and retailers are increasingly looking for ways to anticipate customer demands and stand out from competitors. After seeing a gap in the market, Anthony Law, Founder and CEO of Apana, uncovered an opportunity to help SMEs increase their profitability and customer service by providing them with supply chain tools formerly only accessible to large corporations. He founded Apana on a passion to help SMEs thrive in the competitive retail market.

The Project

Apana is a web-based platform that enables SME retailers to effectively manage their inventory levels, anticipate consumer demands, and manage their supply chain from one place. It uses the data from SMEs’ point of sale (POS) systems to provide responsive inventory management, real-time information on top-selling items, and reminders for when to reorder or reprice items based on inventory levels.

The research project, in collaboration with MacEwan University, will include a data science component to source, understand and sort large datasets, a map of the proposed machine learning solution, and provide a framework for implementing the machine learning solution into the Apana platform. Overall, this project will provide businesses with the tools, knowledge, and data to make sound judgments and decisions for their inventory planning and supply chain.

Through the partnership with MacEwan University, Apana will work directly with four interns under the supervision of Dr Parminder Singh Kang, PhD, to develop an AI algorithm and implementation strategy that will support Apana’s core technology development. The project will span over four quarters and will provide opportunities for capable computer science students to apply their knowledge and expertise to an innovative business with disruptive potential in the Canadian retail industry.