Intelligent retail

AI is rewriting the rules of Retail. Are you ready?

We explore the transformative impact of AI on the retail sector, highlighting how it can unlock significant value. The integration of AI and advanced autonomous systems is paving the way for unprecedented innovation and operational efficiency within the sector. Our findings offer a strategic framework for organizations to effectively leverage AI solutions for retail and enhance customer experiences.

At-a-glance insights:

AI experience is greater than in other sectors

0%

have been using AI for over 3 years

47%

of retailers state that AI has become core to their business

The benefits are flowing through

0%

have seen efficiency improvements

55%

have seen a moderate to very high ROI from their investments so far

The pressure is on to prove ROI

0%

face significant pressure from shareholders to show immediate ROI on AI investment

71%

anticipate an ROI of more than 10 percent from AI in the next year

Retail is seeing strong impact of AI across business functions and budgets are continuing to increase

64%

say their organization has experienced a moderate to high impact from AI on many functions

7 in 10

say the percentage of their organization’s technology budget that goes towards AI will increase over the next year

Improving customer experience and decision making comes out top for AI goals

How to realize value from your AI transformation journey

To address these challenges, KPMG introduces the three phases of AI value — a framework designed to guide retailers through the AI adoption journey. This phased approach provides a structured roadmap, helping retail prioritize investments, align initiatives with business goals, and position themselves effectively in the age of AI in retail.

The Enable phase focuses on enabling people and building AI foundations. Organisations appoint a responsible executive, create an AI strategy, identify high-value use cases, boost AI literacy, align with regulations and establish ethical guardrails. AI pilots are launched across functions, while cloud platforms and pre-trained models are leveraged with minimal customisation.

The Embed phase integrates AI into workflows, products, services, value streams, robotics, and wearables, delivering greater value. A senior leader drives enterprise-wide workforce redesign, re-skilling and change, embedding AI into operating models with a focus on ethics, trust and security. AI agents and diverse models are deployed, supported by cloud and legacy tech modernisation, while enterprise-wide data enhances operations.

The Evolve phase evolves business models and ecosystems, using AI and frontier technologies like quantum computing and blockchain to solve large sector-wide challenges. AI orchestrates seamless value across enterprises and partners. Emphasizing ethics and trust with real-time security, this phase uplifts human potential with broad and deep workforce training, fostering a creative, innovative and value-driven future.