AI boosts conversions
Frasers Group rolled out an AI shopping assistant called Ask Frasers and reports early conversion lifts of as much as 25%, offering one of the clearer retail ROI signals for automation. The company frames the assistant as driving measurable sales outcomes rather than only engagement, which matters when justifying AI spend to merchants. (theindustry.fashion)
Frasers Group says a new shopping chatbot on its Frasers website is lifting sales conversion by as much as 25% versus the site’s old search bar, which is a much harder number than the usual “engagement” claims around retail artificial intelligence. (fashionnetwork.com) The tool is called Ask Frasers, and it lets shoppers type full questions instead of keywords, so someone can ask for a black wedding guest dress or compare beauty products instead of guessing the exact filter menu the site wants. (retailgazette.co.uk) Frasers is the premium fashion and lifestyle chain inside Frasers Group, and it is the business formerly known as House of Fraser, which the company has been repositioning as a more upscale digital and store brand. (retailgazette.co.uk) Under the hood, Ask Frasers is built on Algolia’s “Agentic Experience” system, which mixes large language models with live retail data like stock levels, product features, and what is popular right now. (fashionnetwork.com) That changes the job from “find me the page with these words on it” to “answer my shopping question with products that are actually in stock,” which is why Frasers says shoppers can refine preferences, compare items, and narrow options faster. (retailgazette.co.uk) Retailers have spent years making search boxes better, but search still breaks when a shopper thinks in plain English and the catalog is organized in merchant language like sleeve length, fabrication, fit, or occasion. Ask Frasers is basically trying to act like a store associate who knows the inventory. (fashionnetwork.com) The timing fits Frasers Group’s wider cost and growth plan. In its 2025 annual report, the company said it expects at least £50 million of extra costs in financial year 2026 and is looking for efficiencies through the use of artificial intelligence. (frasers-cms.netlify.app) Frasers Group is not a tiny test case trying to get attention. Its 2025 annual report says the company has more than 30,000 employees worldwide, so even a modest improvement in online conversion can move real revenue across a large retail base. (frasers-cms.netlify.app) That is why the 25% figure stands out. If the lift holds beyond an early rollout, Ask Frasers gives merchants a simple pitch for artificial intelligence spending: not prettier search, but more completed baskets from the same flow of shoppers. (fashionnetwork.com)
