Artificial Intelligence as a Personal Fashion Stylist – Would You Trust it?

• Online return rate in the fashion industry is nearly 35%!
• Cart abandonment rate is nearly 68.3%!?

Now let’s challenge these alarming numbers with the help of AI. Imagine a virtual intelligent assistant (which is more familiar with your preferences and sense of style than you yourself) curating your personalised clothing.?

This is already happening with AI providing individualised shopping experiences that includes recommending clothes based on a person's preferences, body type and even mood. And, interestingly, this is just one of the many benefits that AI can bring to the table.?

Another benefit of AI includes handling clothing product returns. Return is a critical challenge faced by fashion brands and poor fit accounts for nearly 35 per cent of these returns, creating logistical complexities and financial losses for brands.?

AI-based solutions mitigate such return issues by offering personalised sizing guidance, virtual try-ons, enhanced inventory management and warehouse optimisation.?

Particularly e-commerce/m-commerce platforms such as Myntra, AJIO and Amazon Fashion are maximising AI utilisation to reduce their product return rate. AI-based algorithms can help analyse customer data such as their purchase history and body measurements to provide customised size suggestions.?

Amazon’s Fit Insights tool uses large language modelling to analyse customer feedback on fit and categorises them into sizing clusters, helping customers choose the right size. This reduces the chance of customers receiving ill-fitting items.

Another way of reducing returns using AI is Virtual Try-Ons. Online shoppers often find it difficult to determine if a particular product will suit their body type.?

For example, a customer who typically wears a XXL shirt of Brand A may still find the same size of Brand B uncomfortable due to uneven body mass distribution. This often leads to abandoned shopping carts and missed sales opportunities for e-commerce brands.

By using computer vision and machine learning, virtual styling tools allow customers to see how items will look and fit on them before buying. These tools analyse a shopper’s past buying habits, browsing patterns and even social media activity to suggest products that match their preferences.?

This not only boosts the chances of sales but also introduces customers to a broader selection of items they might not have considered. The technology considers body shape, individual tastes and style, helping customers make more confident purchase choices, while decreasing the chances of return.

As the relationship between AI and fashion industry grows, it is critical to remain informed about the latest developments taking place. Join us for Fashion Tech Week, being held on 3-4 April 2025, to extensively explore how artificial intelligence can revolutionise fashion supply chains, making processes more efficient, cost-effective and future-ready.?

Would you let AI shop for you? Tell us how you think AI will influence fashion in future!