Project Background

The client's initial problem was the need to automate and streamline their process of listing products on various marketplaces, particularly Zalando, which requires specific Excel templates to be filled out with product information. The main objectives were to create an AI-driven solution to autonomously manage product listings, improve operational efficiency, and facilitate expansion into new marketplaces across Europe and the US.

Challenges

The client faced challenges in efficiently translating product information from their Shopify system into Zalando's specific Excel templates (AMD sheets, Flexible AMD sheets, and Selection sheets) across multiple languages and countries. Additionally, the client had limited technical awareness, which necessitated a solution that minimized manual work.

Solution

To address the client's needs, Agency AI developed an AI-powered Excel Agent capable of automatically filling out Zalando's AMD (Article Master Data) sheets, Flexible AMD sheets, and Selection sheets using information from the client's Shopify Excel exports and product packaging images. The Agency Swarm framework was used to create specialized agents that could handle complex data processing and translation tasks autonomously.

The implementation involved creating an Excel Agent with specific tools like UpdateFieldTool. This agent uses AI to read from Shopify Excel sheets and product packaging PDFs (including text from images), then fills in the Zalando Excel sheets field by field, handling translations and currency conversions as needed.

Key Features and Functionality

1. AI Agents Developed:
   • AMD Sheet Agent: Autonomously fills in Zalando's AMD Excel sheets using data from Shopify exports and product images.
   • Flexible AMD Sheet Agent: Handles the specific requirements of Zalando's Flexible AMD sheets, ensuring all necessary fields are accurately filled.
   • Selection Sheet Agent: Manages the completion of Zalando's Selection sheets, adapting the data to meet the specific criteria of different marketplaces.
2. Integrations:
   • Planned integration with the client's Shopify PIM (Product Information Management system) and Zalando API.
   • Currency conversion API.
3. Custom Solutions:
   • The Excel Agent can fill in any Excel sheet, which may contain file-, tab-, and field-specific instructions. All of these instructions can be modified by the client on their Google Drive without needing to redeploy or restart the Agent.

Results and Impact

The system successfully automated the process of filling out complex Zalando product sheets, handling multiple languages and marketplaces. While specific quantitative results weren't provided, the qualitative impact includes significant improvements in operational efficiency and the ability to handle multiple products and marketplaces efficiently.

Lessons Learned

Challenges related to multi-language support and specific marketplace requirements were overcome through the use of AI and custom tools.

Conclusion

The project successfully developed an AI-powered system to automate the process of listing products on Zalando across multiple countries and languages, significantly improving the client's operational efficiency and supporting their expansion goals. There are ongoing plans with the client to further optimize and expand their e-commerce operations across multiple marketplaces in Europe and the US.