Han, QiweiCarocci, Luca Silvano2025-02-102024-06-192024-06-05http://hdl.handle.net/10362/178698This thesis examines applying Graph Neural Networks (GNNs) to enhance U.S. dealership network planning for a luxury car manufacturer. A literature review on location factors for car dealerships informs the collection of 65 county-level explanatory variables across five categories. An ablation study on 34 variable combinations and ten state-of-the-art GNN operators ranks the variable categories by their predictive capabilities. The results reveal the significance of competition presence, demographics, and wealth in location decisions and propose seven counties as potential expansion locations. Overall, this research demonstrates the applicability of GNNs in addressing complex spatial decision problems, offering insights for industry practitioners and researchers.engBusiness analyticsGraph neural networksApplied data scienceLocation intelligencemaster thesis203725433