How Chatbots are Shaping the Future of Fashion E-Commerce

17.04.2025

Wittenborg Lecturer Eirini Bazaki Co-authors Study on Chatbots in Fashion

The fashion industry has rapidly embraced digital technologies, driven by the rise of e-commerce, social media and the metaverse. During the COVID-19 pandemic, online shopping became essential, and platforms experienced a surge in sales due to the need for social distancing. This shift has driven a need for online retailers to communicate more effectively with customers and understand their preferences and expectations. One promising solution is the use of interactive recommendation systems, including AI-powered chatbots.

Eirini Bazaki, a visiting lecturer at Wittenborg, co-authored a paper presented at the 2024 Global Fashion Management Conference in Milan. The paper, which was invited for publication in the special issue of the Journal of Global Fashion Marketing on Digital Fashion Marketing in the Age of Transformation, evaluates how the ‘DigAI’ chatbot functions as a gateway for personalised clothing recommendations.

Bazaki explained, "The paper explores the capabilities of an enhanced DigAI chatbot designed to act as a gateway for a recommendation system, aiding users in discovering suitable clothing options. The performance of the proposed chatbot was evaluated among consumers from two culturally distinct countries, the UK and Brazil. This evaluation contributes to the broader effort of improving and personalising the online fashion shopping experience."

In the study, participants assessed their satisfaction with the chatbot’s ability to provide personalised recommendations compared to a simpler Graphical User Interface (GUI). The comparison between these two distinct systems offers insights into consumer perceptions and satisfaction levels with AI-driven chatbots versus traditional interfaces. This cross-cultural evaluation is particularly valuable given the differences in consumer behaviour influenced by cultural values.

Bazaki’s work sheds light on how chatbots can be leveraged to improve the online shopping experience, particularly by providing real-time, personalised recommendations that cater to the specific needs and preferences of fashion consumers across different contexts.

The research found that while chatbots offer a sophisticated, interactive experience, simpler systems like GUIs are still a viable option for fashion e-commerce. This finding is crucial for fashion retailers as they continue to explore the most effective tools for enhancing the customer experience.

Bazaki also noted, "Cultural values significantly impact how consumers in Brazil and the UK perceive the effectiveness and trustworthiness of chatbots. The findings of this study provide important lessons on how cultural differences mediate attitudes toward AI-based recommendation systems."