TheIndustry.fashion LIVE! Hardly Ever Worn It on how to leverage AI in e-commerce

Reporting from TheIndustry.fashion LIVE! ‘A New Era For Fashion E-Commerce’ in partnership with Noatum Logistics, Hardly Ever Worn It’s Co-founder Tatiana Wolter-Ferguson and Adviser Rachel Reavley join Lauretta Roberts to discuss why and how AI can be implemented into the resale market.

E-commerce has come of age and with it a revolution is underway in both the pre- and post-purchase realms. Hardly Ever Worn It (HEWI) is an e-commerce based luxury reseller. Recently, the company has implemented AI to support the consumer journey and are already reaping the rewards.

For some background, the brand was founded when Co-founder Tatiana Wolter-Ferguson’s mother started selling second hand fashion in 2012. Using clothing dug out of storage, as well as her friend’s second hand goodies, she opened up a consignment store in the South of France. The business has transformed into a booming online-first platform, however the starting mission to prevent clothing from unnecessarily ending in landfill remains at the heart of the company.

Wolter-Ferguson said, "The combined second hand shopping with the technology that was starting to open up". But this isn’t the only way HEWI kept up to date. For example, when the luxury market picked up, the company joined the revolution. Tatiana added, "As the landscape changed we started doing luxury".

So, with this, people began to shop at HEWI to access brands they wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford. At first, luxury brands rejected this, advising customers that they could end up purchasing 'fakes'. However, now - with the help of resellers such as HEWI – they embrace the re-sale market. Take Chanel, for example, a selling point for them is now that the product holds resale value.

This influence has penetrated the luxury sector. For example, vintage Gucci Jackie bags started to boom on the resale market, so,  Gucci dipped into its vault and re-released the vintage icon.

Business Advisor Rachel Reavley, who  previously worked with the likes of Vogue and Net-A-Porter, was also in the hot seat. As an advisor to HEWI, she added that the resale market is growing in response to fashion production, noting: "In the last two decades over production has become a major concern, presenting a whole host of products such as brands left with an abundance of stock." HEWI’s mission is to democratise luxury, providing a solution to both the brands and sellers.

70% of fashion’s ‘problem’ today is the increased supply chain and over consumption. The company, therefore, offers a scalable solution.

As a shift in consumerism is underway, Wolter-Ferguson and Reavley went on to explain that they don’t need to spend a penny on marketing and that the company is growing organically, through networking and word of mouth.

But the real recipe for success? Incorporating AI technology. The company addd AI into the miz and has seen since immediate success.

Customers can ask, for example, "I am looking for a purple dress with pink spots" and AI can immediately select the item, rather than the company having to individually input the dresses characteristics which may produce undesirable results.What’s more, the new technologies recognise natural language rather than key words.

This is revolutionising the resale space, especially when customers are looking for a specific piece and the SKU is maybe one or two For example.

In terms of incorporating new AI capabilities, Reavley notes, "It’s about a blend. When the status quo changes its not about getting rid of the old but combining the two."

When the duo were asked if they incorporate AI into the business side in addition to the consumer facing side, they explain the big plans they have for the future.

Wolter-Ferguson said: "Were launching tools to help us with descriptions, for example. We will always have a human check at the end, but it’s easy for AI to recognise the brand and condition of a product and would save us a lot of time imputing information." This also benefits structuring the title and description to bump SEO.

The Co-founder goes even further to explain AI authentication is in the works, but it has so many layers that it’s taking time. The possibilities are endless, she added, "It’ll be exciting when we get there".