[University and Business] Scholarly Journal-Action Research

I'm working on my methodology section and am trying to define my research process. I conducted research (both quantitative and qualitative) in hopes of identifying the cause of a retail company's decline in profits. This was done out of my own choice and personal interest in retail marketing. Is it considered action research if i am not contracted by the retailer to conduct this research but am voluntarily conducting it to try and solve their problem?