What Sofco does

Sofco is a UK-based software company that provides end-to-end supply chain planning software to blue-chip enterprise clients in the Retail, Food & CPG, and Manufacturing sectors. The company has operated for more than 25 years, serving customers across the United Kingdom, United States, and Europe. Its core offering is the sofco Planning suite, a cloud-based platform comprising integrated solution modules including Demand Planning, Supply Planning, Scheduling, Sales & Operations Planning / Integrated Business Planning (SOP IBP), WSSI Retail Planning, Trade Promotions, and Collaborative Forecaster. The suite is underpinned by machine learning/AI capabilities for predictive forecasting, cloud infrastructure for scalability, and an integrated solution architecture designed to unify traditionally fragmented planning processes.

Sofco generates revenue through four primary streams: software licensing and subscriptions for the sofco Planning suite, managed services for ongoing support and system management, implementation services for platform deployment, and best practice advisory consulting. Its go-to-market is a direct enterprise sales motion targeting executive stakeholders and supporting long, technically rigorous evaluation cycles. Customer segments are organized by vertical, with Retail and Food & CPG as primary verticals alongside Manufacturing. Marketing is conducted primarily through the company's website, including case studies, resource libraries, and value proposition pages aimed at supply chain and operations leaders.

In January 2026, Sofco was acquired by Forma Innovations, a Norfolk-based institutionally backed group specializing in retail and supply chain technology and backed by private equity firm Tern Capital. The £8.3 million transaction was financed via a Shawbrook debt facility. Post-acquisition, Sofco continues to operate under its existing brand, with new CEO Stuart Lowe appointed to lead an accelerated innovation agenda across the sofco Planning suite, leveraging the broader Forma's resources for enhanced functionality, scalability, and customer experience.

Name

Sofco

Legal name

Sofco Ltd.

Website

https://sofco.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Sofco is a UK-based software company providing end-to-end supply chain planning software (sofco Planning suite) to blue-chip Retail, Food & CPG, and Manufacturing clients across the UK, US, and Europe for over 25 years.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Supply Chain Planning Software

NAICS

Software Publishers (51321)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Supply Chain Planning (S&OP/IBP, Demand & Inventory) (BPAHAHAD)

Keywords

• Supply chain planning
• Demand planning software
• Sales operations planning
• Retail merchandise planning
• Trade promotion management

Headquarters

HQ city

Teesside County Borough

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Software Licenses and Subscriptions: Sofco generates revenue through enterprise software licensing and subscription fees for its end-to-end supply chain planning suite, serving global Food & CPG, Retail, and Manufacturing clients with integrated planning solutions.
2. Managed Services: Professional managed services revenue stream including ongoing support, system management, and operational assistance for clients using the sofco Planning suite.
3. Implementation Services: Professional services revenue from system implementation, configuration, and deployment of the sofco Planning platform for enterprise clients.
4. Best Practice Advisory: Consulting services providing best practice guidance and advisory support for supply chain optimization and planning processes.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Sofco develops and sells the sofco Planning suite, an end-to-end cloud-based supply chain planning software platform that combines demand planning, supply planning, scheduling, SOP/IBP, retail planning (WSSI), trade promotions, and collaborative forecasting into a unified offering. The software is targeted at blue-chip enterprise clients in the Retail, Food & CPG, and Manufacturing industries across the UK, US, and Europe, and is complemented by professional services for implementation, supply chain design, best practice advisory, data management, managed services, and training.

Product overview

Sofco is a UK-based provider of end-to-end Supply Chain Planning software. The offering is organized as the sofco Planning suite — a unified platform with multiple integrated solution modules including Demand Planning, Supply Planning, Scheduling, SOP IBP, WSSI Retail Planning, Trade Promotions, and Collaborative Forecaster. The suite is complemented by professional services covering Implementation, Supply Chain Design, Best Practice Advisory, Data Management, Managed Services, and Training. The software targets global Food & CPG, Retail, and Manufacturing clients and has served blue-chip clients across the UK, US, and Europe for more than 25 years.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• sofco Planning suite End-to-end cloud-based supply chain planning software platform that drives better decisions with intuitive, integrated insights for modern businesses, combining demand planning, supply planning, scheduling, SOP/IBP, WSSI retail planning, trade promotions, and collaborative forecasting modules. Targeted at blue-chip enterprise clients in Retail, Food & CPG, and Manufacturing.
• Demand Planning Demand planning solution within the sofco Planning suite, providing forecasting and demand sensing capabilities for enterprise supply chain teams.
• Supply Planning Supply planning solution within the sofco Planning suite, optimizing supply chain operations and supply-demand balance.
• Scheduling Scheduling solution within the sofco Planning suite for operational scheduling and production planning.
• SOP IBP Sales and Operations Planning / Integrated Business Planning solution module within the sofco Planning suite.
• WSSI Retail Planning Specialized retail planning solution within the sofco Planning suite for merchandise planning and allocation, tailored to major retailers.
• Trade Promotions Trade promotions planning and optimization solution module within the sofco Planning suite for CPG promotional planning.
• Collaborative Forecaster Collaborative forecasting solution within the sofco Planning suite that enables cross-functional alignment on demand forecasts.
• Implementation Services Professional services for system implementation, configuration, and deployment of the sofco Planning platform for enterprise clients.
• Supply Chain Design Strategic supply chain design and network optimization consulting services for clients using or planning to adopt the sofco Planning suite.
• Best Practice Advisory Consulting services providing best practice guidance and advisory support for supply chain optimization and planning processes.
• Data Management Data management services supporting the sofco Planning suite, including data quality, integration, and governance.
• Managed Services Ongoing managed services providing support, system management, and operational assistance for clients using the sofco Planning suite.
• Training Training services for users of the sofco Planning suite, covering platform functionality and supply chain planning best practices.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability1 record

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Forma InnovationscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Forma Innovations, a software and services group focused on the retail sector backed by private equity firm Tern Capital, acquired Sofco in January 2026. The acquisition expands Forma's supply chain software capabilities and strengthens its position in mission-critical retail technology. Under Forma's ownership, Sofco gains access to scale and resources of a larger institutional group for accelerated innovation across its sofco Planning suite.
• Hill DickinsonminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLaw firm Hill Dickinson provided advisory services for the acquisition of sofco by Forma Innovations, advising on the legal aspects of the transaction.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Manhattan Associates: Manhattan Associates offers supply chain planning and inventory optimization solutions, with growing overlap with Sofco in retail and wholesale distribution verticals.

Direct peers

• o9 Solutions: o9 Solutions delivers an AI-powered integrated business planning platform covering demand sensing, supply planning, and S&OP. It is a direct competitor to Sofco in mid-market and large-enterprise SCP deals.
• ToolsGroup: ToolsGroup provides AI-driven demand planning, inventory optimization, and supply planning software. It competes with Sofco across retail and CPG verticals with comparable ML-based forecasting capabilities.
• RELEX Solutions: RELEX Solutions specializes in retail-focused supply chain and merchandise planning, directly overlapping with Sofco's WSSI Retail Planning and trade promotion capabilities for retail vertical customers.
• Blue Yonder: Blue Yonder (formerly JDA Software) is a leading supply chain planning platform vendor with strong retail, manufacturing, and CPG focus. It directly competes with Sofco's sofco Planning suite across demand, supply, and retail merchandise planning.
• Kinaxis: Kinaxis offers the Maestro platform for concurrent supply chain planning, with comparable demand, supply, and S&OP capabilities. It competes for the same enterprise SCP RFPs that Sofco targets.

Broad incumbents

• SAP (Integrated Business Planning): SAP IBP is part of SAP's broader ERP/SCM portfolio and competes in the same S&OP, demand, and supply planning buying cycles as Sofco, typically as a broad incumbent with deeper integration into SAP ERP environments.
• E2open: E2open provides a broad supply chain platform spanning demand/supply planning, logistics, and trade promotion management. It overlaps with Sofco across planning and trade promotion, especially in CPG.
• Oracle (SCM Cloud): Oracle SCM Cloud includes supply chain planning capabilities that compete with Sofco, typically as part of broader Oracle ERP/Cloud deployments rather than as a specialized standalone SCP offering.

Others

• Anaplan: Anaplan provides a connected planning platform used for S&OP, demand, and supply planning scenarios. While not a direct SCP competitor, it overlaps with Sofco's SOP/IBP and collaborative planning use cases in mid-market enterprises.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sofco-ltd

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sofco