Fashion AI™ Research
The Value-Seeking Fashion Client
Price sensitivity and comparison behaviour are visible across income groups. Assortment, promotion and storytelling should therefore be read together rather than as separate commercial systems.
Reported
70%
Fashion consumers planning to spend less
Value pressure should be assumed in pricing, promotion and assortment decisions.
Reported
80%
Fashion consumers showing value-seeking behaviour
Includes waiting for sales and shopping across retailers for the same item.
Reported
+14%
Fashion inventory days vs pre-2020 average
A signal to prioritize demand planning, allocation and inventory churn.
Reported
50%
Luxury shoppers consulting secondhand before buying new
Resale is now part of discovery and value validation, not only a post-purchase channel.
Reported
50%
Luxury shoppers using AI in the purchase journey
Product data, comparison content and brand narratives increasingly need to be machine-readable.
Reported
19%
US consumers using AI to discover or decide purchases
Among US consumers who reported using AI tools.
Reported
74%
EU-5 recent AI use — Italy
Share reporting AI use in the prior three months; UK 67%, Germany 66%, France 63%, Spain 59%.
Reported
70%+
Gen Z + Millennials share of resale growth through 2030
A strong cohort signal for circular fashion, acquisition and lifecycle strategies.
Reported
~25%
Consumers using generative AI for shopping
Across McKinsey’s 2026 five-country consumer sample, about one quarter reported using generative AI for shopping.
Reported
28%
Gen Z using generative AI for shopping
Versus 16% among boomers in the same study—an important discovery-channel difference by cohort.
Reported
34%
Gen Z citing social media in purchase decisions
Social remains a material conversion influence, not only a top-of-funnel awareness channel.
Reported
−8%
Open-web traffic since 2023
Discovery is fragmenting across AI, social, marketplaces and owned channels, increasing the value of structured product and brand data.
Reported
64%
Luxury buyers using AI — China
Share who used AI during their most recent luxury purchase in Bain’s April 2026 consumer research; US was 54% and France 27%.
Reported
82%
Top-tier luxury clients using AI
AI use rises sharply with spending level: 82% among top-tier clients versus 28% among the lowest-spending segment.
Reported
47%
In-store luxury buyers using AI before the boutique
Physical retail increasingly inherits a digital research journey; store teams, product information and inventory visibility should assume pre-visit AI discovery.