Stat Library

Retailers view leveraging AI as their #1 opportunity.

Top Retail Industry Challenges

1. Increased competition
2. Inflation and high costs
3. Rising customer acquisition costs
4. Changing consumer behavior
5. Costs of returns

25% of shoppers use social platforms to purchase products

53% of shoppers use social platforms to discover products, up from 46% in 2023.

• 76% of Gen Z vs. 36% of baby boomers

Only 17% of store associates have access to a unified view of customer data

74% of retailers are increasing their data management investments

39% of shoppers have used AI to discover new products

84% of retailers currently use AI.

• Only 2% of retailers say they have no plans to use AI.

Top Factors That Increase Shoppers’ Trust in AI Agents

1. Data privacy and security protections
2. Ability to easily turn it off/on
3. Require approval before any purchase
4. Transparency over how data is used
5. Available human customer service backup

Shoppers’ Top Agent Use Cases

1. Answer questions for faster customer service
2. Optimize loyalty points
3. Complete returns and exchanges
4. Secure high-demand products before they sell out
5. Buy items when they reach a target price

Gen Z shoppers are 10x more likely than baby boomers to frequently use AI to discover new products (20% vs. 2%)

54% of Gen Z shoppers have used AI to discover new products