As Chief Executive Officer of 7thonline, Mr. Max Ma is responsible for leading the company’s overall operations, including the growth strategy, solutions roadmap, and global expansion. Mr. Ma has over two decades of management experience at companies including HBO and Pantone, where he was the lead developer for Pantone’s Electronic Color Systems. He has successfully driven numerous large-scale IT projects and has overseen the development of apparel design automation CAD systems.

We’re particularly excited by the AI boom as artificial intelligence is embedded into the core of our system, providing us with a new frontier to collaborate with innovative brands looking to adopt AI capabilities—we’ve been doing AI for the past 25+ years.

Mr. Ma was a member of the Board of Trustees and the Treasurer of the Yale-China Association, a nonprofit organization with more than a century of experience contributing to the development of education in China, and to the furtherance of understanding and knowledge between Chinese and American people. He also served as a Board member of the Center for Technology in Supply Chain and Merchandising at Polytechnic University. Mr. Ma holds a M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from Polytechnic University.

What inspired you to establish 7thonline in 1999, and how has the company’s mission evolved since its inception?

I started working in retail as a software engineer, and quickly realized that the industry needed more effective ways to boost inventory productivity. It was surprising to see multi-billion dollar companies with completely manual processes. I (specifically) saw an opportunity to use artificial intelligence to improve the inventory decision-making process. We embraced the challenge; breaking the cycle of low margins, limited resources and sub-optimal decision-making. Ultimately, we believe that AI will improve quality of life as there is a more efficient use of time, better results and cost efficiencies.

We’ve been developing our AI solutions for 25+ years through continuous R&D and client collaboration to specifically address industry needs. Early on, we introduced AI tools for wholesale buying and planning, partnering with major wholesalers like Liz Claiborne, Jones Apparel Group and Kellwood. Over time, we added a whole suite of demand planning capabilities to address direct-to-consumer retail needs, servicing brands with both DTC and wholesale channels to align supply and consumer demand, increase margins and reduce excess stock.

Today, 7thonline remains committed to helping the retail industry, which still relies heavily on Excel, by offering AI capabilities that enhance profitability and elevate inventory productivity. We’re always developing new functionality, expanding our algorithms and utilizing advanced AI and machine learning to help streamline retail and wholesale processes.

7thonline leverages advanced analytics, machine learning, and AI to assist retailers. Could you elaborate on how these technologies enhance demand planning and inventory management for your clients?

Using cutting-edge technology such as advanced analytics, machine learning and AI, we’re enabling retailers to better understand their customers and meet their expectations—from analyzing demand drivers to adaptive forecasting, the system considers all consumer affinities for the most accurate forecasts. Our system architecture is based on various AI methodology, and has laid a powerful foundation to support retailers in their planning and inventory management needs. With the latest LLM capabilities, we are taking the platform to the next level.

These technologies enhance demand planning and inventory management by analyzing data such as historical sales—down to style, size, color and store per week—to predict demand and inform decisions; by being demand-driven, retailers can make inventory decisions based on a product’s propensity to sell. With increased tariffs, making the right inventory decisions is even more critical—the “wrong” decisions become more costly. By only importing goods necessary to fulfill demand, retailers can avoid the costs associated with excess inventory and preserve their margins. AI simply makes this process much easier.

The retail sector faces challenges like seasonal demand fluctuations and supply chain disruptions. How does 7thonline’s platform address these issues to support retailers effectively?​

We understand that the retail industry is primarily focused on short lifecycle and seasonal products, and have taken the related challenges into consideration when building our AI-native platform. Using industry-specific algorithms to address industry-specific needs, our system helps retailers dynamically adjust their inventory strategies to shifting consumer demand.

For example, forecasting demand is hard, but forecasting demand for new seasonal items without a sales history is borderline impossible. 7thonline’s AI-based platform is able to address this gap in information by analyzing data from similar styles and their performance, to predict their future sales based on trends and granular insights. Because of the sheer volume of data—down to style, color, size, store location and weekly sales—this is extremely difficult without artificial intelligence. The system leverages a wide range of data sources such as POS data, shipment data, logistic and warehouse data and marketing data to analyze the demand signal from every single channel of distribution.

Your solutions have been adopted by notable brands such as PVH, Patagonia, and Canada Goose. Can you share a success story that highlights the tangible benefits a client experienced after implementing 7thonline’s solutions?​

7thonline has been servicing the retail industry for over 25 years; we’ve had clients stay with us for decades because of the firsthand benefits they experience using the system.

For example, a multi-billion dollar wholesale client was dealing with growing supply chain costs and sought to improve its operational efficiency and production accuracy across 11 global brands. By using our AI-powered account planning system, they were able to expedite their production buy orders one week earlier than their competitors, resulting in a $1/garment cost reduction.

For another client, a major retailer operating 8,000+ stores, allocation was their main concern—they wanted to improve allocation productivity and reduce operational costs from imprecise allocation and replenishment processes. Using the AI-powered forecasting capabilities, they were able to improve inventory accuracy from 60% to 92%, efficiently aligning stock to consumer demand and reducing the reallocation efforts.

With a background that includes roles at HBO and Pantone, how have your past experiences influenced your approach to leading 7thonline?

I’ve worked with a lot of really bright people that have influenced my approach to technology and my work mindset—they’ve trained me to optimize my skills, lay a foundation and then scale. Through my past experiences, I’ve not only been able to hone my technological prowess but also my managerial skills. My leadership philosophy centers around trust and passion—it’s essential to find the right talent and trust in their abilities. Work-life balance, business success and quality of life, is critical to stay energetic.

As the retail industry continues to evolve, what trends do you foresee, and how is 7thonline positioning itself to meet the future needs of retailers?​

Throughout the years, we’ve been fortunate to partner with leading global brands and retailers to conceptualize and develop new functionality that enhances our solutions based on industry needs. We’re constantly collaborating with clients to develop new tools that improve retail processes and inventory decisions as the industry’s needs evolve.

Recently, we’re seeing more and more retailers place an importance on data analytics and efficiency. The biggest tech trend: artificial intelligence. While brands are always searching for innovative tech, AI is what’s on everyone’s radar right now; we think that more brands will continue to adopt AI in order to stay competitive in a saturated market. We’re particularly excited by the AI boom as artificial intelligence is embedded into the core of our system, providing us with a new frontier to collaborate with innovative brands looking to adopt AI capabilities—we’ve been doing AI for the past 25+ years.

How can retailers and wholesalers find out more about the 7thonline platform?

Retailers and wholesalers can find out more about 7thonline through our website, www.7thonline.com, or on LinkedIn. If they’re looking for a planning or inventory management solution, they can fill out a form to get in contact with a member of our team. We also regularly go to industry conferences such as NRF, so keep an eye out for news on our booth and speaking sessions.

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