Logility's software went looking for the money that hid in a company's warehouses. Too much stock tied up cash, and too little lost sales. Logility forecast demand, planned inventory, and coordinated transport across a company's suppliers and warehouses. It was a unit of American Software, an Atlanta company. In October 1997 American Software sold part of Logility to the public in an offering and kept majority control.

A Market of Its Own

In the 1990s manufacturers and retailers were learning how much of their cost hid in the supply chain. The bet was that supply chain planning was a large market of its own, separate from general business software. Logility sold to consumer goods makers, distributors, and retailers. Its tools let planners look ahead, test scenarios, and share forecasts with partners. That cut waste and improved service for companies that moved large volumes of goods.

Back Home, Then Aptean

Logility priced its offering at $14.50 a share in October 1997 and sold 2.2 million shares. It stayed a small public company, with American Software as its controlling owner. In 2009 American Software bought the shares it did not already own and took Logility back in-house. American Software later took the Logility name for itself. In April 2025 Aptean bought the company for $14.30 a share in cash.

Cover: Barges at Auteuil, Gustave Leheutre. Art Institute of Chicago, public domain. Chosen for river barges (goods in motion).