Generative AI in Fashion: How Marketing Experts Integrate GenAI in their Knowledge Intensive Work

Generative AI is transforming customer–brand interactions across the customer journey, particularly in fashion retail. While prior research has focused on isolated outcomes such as engagement and personalization, limited attention has been given to how GenAI shapes customer experiences through specific mechanisms. Drawing on customer-perceived value theory and the AIDA model, this study examines how GenAI operates across pre-purchase, purchase, and post-purchase stages. Based on 21 semi-structured interviews with fashion industry professionals, five distinct GenAI-enabled mechanisms are identified: contextual personalization, interactive engagement, immersive visualization, guided decision-making, and continuous assistance, each generating distinct customer benefits at specific stages of the journey. The study extends customer-perceived value research by conceptualizing value creation as a stage-contingent and mechanism-driven phenomenon.