VML’s latest Future Shopper report suggests technology has yet to replace the fundamentals of shopping: value, trust, availability and a good customer experience.
South African consumers are increasingly turning to AI for product discovery. The report points to a growing gap between the enthusiasm surrounding AI in the retail industry and how consumers are actually using the technology.
South Africans are already experimenting with AI tools as part of their shopping journeys. According to the report, 59% of local respondents use ChatGPT, while 41% use Google Gemini.
But adoption does not necessarily equal trust.
“The race to adopt AI can distract brands from the harder question: why should someone choose them?” says Parusha Partab, chief strategy officer at VML South Africa.
“South African shoppers are under financial pressure and scrutinising what deserves their money and trust. Brands have to make that choice feel worthwhile.”
Economic pressure is another factor shaping how consumers shop.
Nearly 70% of South African respondents say they are experiencing greater financial anxiety than ever before, with many cutting back on discretionary spending.
That does not mean consumers are giving up on all non-essential purchases. Instead, they are becoming more selective about where they spend, with clothing, coffee and beauty among the categories consumers continue to protect as “sacred luxuries”.
For brands, that puts greater emphasis on demonstrating why a product deserves a place in the basket.
Creators, storytelling and useful product information can help build interest and confidence, but the underlying offer still needs to deliver on price, product and experience.
Despite the rapid growth of AI-powered discovery, search engines have reclaimed their position as consumers’ top source for product inspiration and search.
At the same time, confidence in digital discovery is slipping.
Nearly 45% of South African respondents say search quality has declined over the past year, while almost 60% believe sponsored search results make it harder to find the best products.
Almost half, 49%, also feel that their favourite online platforms have become worse over time.
The findings point to a more discerning consumer who is not simply looking for more information, but for information they can trust.
The report also highlights changing attitudes towards personal data.
More than 52% of South African respondents say they would exchange deeply personal information for monthly income, including data such as real-time location, shopping habits and health metrics.
The finding points to a shifting relationship between privacy and value, with consumers increasingly considering what their personal information is worth when there is a tangible benefit attached to sharing it.
For all the attention around AI, the fundamentals of commerce remain remarkably familiar.
Online and offline shopping have moved closer to parity, with 51% of respondents’ spending now taking place online. Across both environments, price, product availability and a frictionless experience remain key considerations.
More than half of South African respondents, 54.4%, say they will not shop with brands that fail to meet their basic digital expectations.
Meanwhile, 48% regularly abandon purchases because of frustrating online shopping experiences.
In other words, getting a shopper to a product is only one part of the journey. If the product is unavailable, the price does not make sense or the checkout becomes frustrating, the technology driving discovery cannot save the sale.
When it comes to what South Africans actually want to buy, human influence continues to carry more weight than AI.
Family is the biggest influence among respondents, at 22%, followed closely by traditional creators at 20%. Friends account for 9.7%.
AI tools, meanwhile, influence what consumers like to buy for just 1.9% of South African respondents.
That gap is particularly interesting at a time when brands are producing increasing amounts of AI-generated content.
“AI can help a brand get discovered. It still has to give people a reason to care,” says Partab.
She notes that creators sit close behind family as an influence on what South Africans want to buy, while more than half of respondents say their feeds are cluttered with low-quality AI content they have no interest in.
For brands, the opportunity is therefore not simply to produce more content, but to create things consumers actually want to watch, engage with and return to.
Now in its 10th year, Future Shopper has tracked how technology, culture and changing expectations have reshaped commerce.
Over the past decade, the study has followed the rise of mobile shopping, marketplaces, social commerce and, more recently, AI-powered product discovery.
VML global chief strategy officer Neil Dawson says the technology may continue to change, but the foundations of a strong brand remain consistent.
“A decade of Future Shopper research tells us that commerce never stands still, but the foundations of great brands remain remarkably consistent,” says Dawson.
“Today’s consumers are more informed, more demanding, and more discerning than ever. The winners of the next era of commerce won’t simply be the brands with the best technology and data, they’ll be the ones that earn and sustain consumer confidence.”
The findings suggest that AI is becoming another tool in the shopping journey rather than a replacement for consumer judgment.
For brands, that means the technology still needs to connect back to the things consumers already value: a product worth choosing, a price that feels fair, reliable information and an experience that does not create unnecessary friction.
As AI becomes increasingly embedded in commerce, the question may therefore be less about how quickly brands can adopt it and more about whether they are using it to make the shopping experience genuinely better.
