Why Marks & Spencer believes AI can’t replace human creativity in fashion marketing

New Delhi: Artificial Intelligence may be sweeping across industries, reshaping marketing and commerce, but not everyone is sold on the promise of machines mastering creativity. For Purvaa Kapadia, Head of Marketing at Marks & Spencer (M&S), the hype around AI meets a hard stop when it collides with fashion’s most essential ingredient—humanness.

“We’ve done experimentation. We’ve put some of our products on an AI background, created beautiful creatives, put money on those creatives, but we’ve not seen any engagement around them,” Kapadia said. “If I have an influencer campaign or a model shot, very aesthetically done with a little bit of boost, it performs much better versus what we’ve seen on AI.”

Her verdict is blunt: AI is not good at creating connection, creating that humanness or the emotion that sells.

Productivity vs creativity

Kapadia isn’t dismissing AI altogether. She acknowledged its utility in productivity, from segmenting loyalty data to generating reports faster. “AI is really helping us in segmentation. It’s doing a great job in churning out reports faster. So, yes, from a productivity standpoint, it works best. But I’m not sure from a creative standpoint,” she added.

Her own experiments with AI presentation and analytical tools reinforced this gap. “I take inputs from AI. I have tried the presentation tools of AI. I’ve tried the analytical tools of AI. But it’s very generic. The output is so generic that you have to put in your effort into it.”

In a world where fast fashion brands flood timelines with algorithm-perfect imagery, Kapadia believes that “rawness” is what resonates. “You have to be relatable. People should feel connected with you. If you’re too perfect, people will not connect with you,” she argued.

For M&S, the human touch is non-negotiable. “In my category, you cannot sideline the human part. If you look at our models, you will see diversity among them. You would also see models with freckles on their faces. You would also see models of various ethnicities, and so on. We do love to work with plus-size models, too. Until and unless you have that variety, diversity in your communication, people will not relate to you,” Kapadia said.

“It’s a rejection of sterile, machine-polished perfection in favour of something more real. While AI is there, we need rawness also in the market to be relevant.”

E-commerce growth without losing identity

Alongside its creative stance, M&S has steadily built its digital presence without losing sight of its brand essence. “E-commerce is doing really well for us. We’ve got a very good presence of stores in the country, almost 94 plus stores. E-commerce has been there since the time COVID hit. So in the last 4–5 years, it’s taken a big share of business. Almost now 24–25% of the business is coming from e-commerce,” the CMO revealed.

But unlike some who chase speed with Q-commerce, Kapadia is cautious. “We’ve not got into Q-commerce yet, but we do have plans in the future to get into Q-commerce. But that’s far,” she clarified.

That careful phrasing reflects the brand’s refusal to jump on every trend. “We as a brand believe in giving that value to our consumers. We are not a fast fashion brand. You will forever wear the M&S jacket, coat. But that quality comes at a certain price. We don’t want to stoop down to the levels of a lot of discounting.”

Loyalty before discounts

At a time when fast fashion brands lure customers with 50–70% cuts, M&S’s restraint may appear out of step. But Kapadia insisted it’s part of a longer play. “We believe in good fashion. We believe in good quality at a certain price. And a consumer who is a M&S loyalist will know what it brings to them. Slashing down prices is not our philosophy.”

“85% of our customers are loyal customers. It’s a huge number which is nowhere in the industry where you will feel that you have that number. Once an M&S customer starts getting used to the brand, they become extremely loyal. Then they don’t want to go out,” she added.

For Kapadia, it’s not about chasing the noisy crowds around fast fashion stores. “We are more focused on that quality consumer who really believes in our brand, and wants to spend that little buck for the brand. And then we look at a customer lifetime value. Versus just one or two visits, and not coming back. We really look at the CLT.”

Communication shifts to digital

The change is visible in M&S’s media strategy too. “We are focusing majorly nowadays on digital. Almost 70% of the spend is on digital. We do have a mix of print and some ATL outdoors, etc., but mostly seasonal, especially during festive seasons or winters. But a major chunk of communication, advertising, has moved to digital. Because your entire consumer is on digital. To have relevant content for that platform is important,” Kapadia highlighted.

Kapadia’s stance cuts against the current hype cycle. While fast fashion players lean into AI to churn out designs, campaigns and “personalised” engagement, M&S is doubling down on human creativity, diversity and quality. And if 85% of M&S’s customers truly stay loyal, she may just be proving her point: AI can’t sell fashion, but authenticity still can.