Bentonville tech firm Atlas Technology Group names Mark Samuels president

Consumer goods and retail veteran Mark Samuels has joined Atlas Technology Group as president. The Bentonville company provides data analytics and insights to many of the world’s largest consumer goods companies.

Atlas Technology Group was acquired by Advantage Solutions in 2015. Samuels succeeds the company’s previous chief executive, John Matise, who left the company last year.

“We are very pleased to welcome Mark, whose domain expertise has made him a valued partner to brands and retailers all over the world, to the Advantage family,” Chris Butler, president, Advantage Digital Commerce, said in a news release. “Mark’s forward-looking, tech-oriented approach aligns with the mission critical needs of our clients in this fast- and ever-changing business environment.

“He is the perfect leader to accelerate Atlas’ growth initiatives and leverage Advantage’s ability to provide consumer goods companies a true omnichannel commerce solution.”

With more than two decades of experience in the retail and consumer goods industry, Samuels has defined and implemented new category management and merchandising processes and technology solutions to execute best-in-class assortment planning, forecasting, allocation, pricing and inventory strategies that improve product appeal and customer engagement.

Most recently, Samuels served as an external advisor for Bain & Co.’s Retail and Consumer Products Practices, where he delivered category leadership capabilities and sales strategies to global consumer packaged goods companies and national retail organizations. Prior to Bain & Co., he spent 20 years with Walmart in various leadership roles across the UK and US spanning merchandise planning, category lifecycle management, space planning and pricing.

“Atlas has long been a pioneer in synchronizing data and applying advanced analytics that provide consumer goods companies with actionable insights for better decision-making and operational efficiencies,” Samuels said in a statement. “As the pandemic has upended supply chains, sales patterns and shopper behaviors, actionable data has become even more important for our clients. I look forward to working with the Atlas and Advantage teams, at a time when the future of the industry is being reshaped.”

Atlas Technology Group has 80 employees in Northwest Arkansas.