What’s your problem statement?

Hyperlocal has taken off in India, but demand prediction remains a challenge. Can AI help with inventory management?

The problem Local Sahayak solves

Hyperlocal demand prediction is a major challenge for small, local grocery stores that need to manage inventory effectively. These stores often lack sophisticated tools for anticipating demand changes driven by seasonality, weather, and local events or holidays, leading to overstocking or stockouts. This not only impacts customer satisfaction but also reduces profitability and increases food waste.

Challenges we ran into

One major hurdle was generating a realistic dataset with proper correlations between product categories, brands, and pricing while ensuring holiday and event data matched local Indian contexts. The initial datasets contained mismatches, like detergent brands appearing in snack categories or irrelevant holidays. We overcame this by refining our data-generation prompt, carefully mapping brands to specific categories, and using a structured holiday calendar. This ensured the dataset was accurate and contextually relevant for demand predictions.