Reports
Inputs Daily Report | 2026
AI in Fashion, Beauty and Retail: From Search to Merchandising
How consumer brands are using AI to reshape discovery, product selection, content production, inventory and retail execution.
AI Moves from Novelty to Operating System
Artificial intelligence is no longer just improving search or powering chatbots. It is becoming part of the operating system behind fashion, beauty and retail. Our latest independent white paper, AI in Fashion, Beauty and Retail: From Search to Merchandising, explores how AI is reshaping every stage of the value chain—from search and visual discovery to merchandising, demand forecasting, inventory management, content production and store operations. Drawing on industry case studies and publicly available data, the report examines where AI is creating measurable business value today, what separates successful adoption from isolated experimentation, and why competitive advantage is increasingly shifting toward data quality, workflow integration and human decision-making. Whether you're a brand executive, retailer, technology leader or strategist, this report offers a practical framework for understanding where AI is heading—and how to prepare for what's next.
Contents
- 01 Executive Snapshot
- 02 Executive Summary
- 03 Core Findings
- 04 Market Context
- 05 The New Retail AI Stack
- 06 Search and Discovery
- 07 Content Production and Catalog Enrichment
- 08 Merchandising and Assortment Planning
- 09 Beauty: From Recommendation to Diagnosis
- 10 Fashion: Visual Scale, Styling and Demand Risk
- 11 Retail Operations: The Less Visible AI Opportunity
- 12 Risks and Limits
- 13 12-Month Watchlist
- 14 Strategic Implications
- 15 Sources and Reference Links