AI Waves Reach Fashion: Zara Joins the Shift to Virtual Models

Jan 14, 2026

AI’s Ripple Effect Across Industries

Waves of AI continue to ripple down its effects to various sectors, fashion industry without any doubt will not be able to escape from its impact as well.

Zara Joins the AI Bandwagon

Zara joined the bandwagon of fashion brands using the AI for creating human models that wear their designs.

These news came amid waves of shop closures that has been haunting fashion retail for some time.

Zara opted in for making arrangement with their current models to use their liking and sought to obtain their permission to be used in virtual try on.

A notable commitment

Interestingly Zara claimed to pledge to pay same salary to the models as for a standard shoot.

AI as a Supplement, Not a Sudden Replacement

The news indicated they started using AI to supplement their existing photoshoot workloads, and it is expected to be gradual transition to virtual photoshoots at this point.

Zara followed the steps of their rival H&M, which was short ago reported by Financial Times (link to other blog post) to start using digital twins to showcase their models.

Retail Reality: Scaling Down Stores, Scaling Up Digital

Zara performed well in comparison to their rivals, but they reportedly have been scaling down the physical retail and closing stores globally while investing heavily in online ecommerce.

The news outlet stated clearly that the AI assisted images start to look more like:

“operational discipline”
rather than
“creative experiment”

Why This Shift Is Inevitable

These news came as no wonder.

In the age of attention seeking, the online presence depends on content creation, and AI provides a clear way for faster content creation, that can be more personalized and laser focused to customer segments.

What becomes possible with AI-driven content

One can create ecommerce photography catalog for different ethnicities and markets
as well as for differing body sizes
for a clothing catalog of 100 different styles in matter of minutes
One can create social media campaigns targeted for 20 different sub customer segments
that prioritise different visual aesthetics and fashion sub cultures
with fraction of the cost

This has never been the case.

Competitive Pressure and the Coming Shift

The effect of one brand using the AI, will eventually force all others to do so as well.

One curious question that is pending answer is:

will the Behemoths of Fashion pioneer this revolution
or will it be utilised well by new players that will be the next disrupter in the industry.

Start Your AI Transformation Today

AI-assisted fashion content is no longer an experiment reserved for a few global brands.
It is becoming an operational capability.

As Zara and H&M demonstrate, digital twins, virtual models, and AI-generated imagery are now part of how modern fashion businesses scale content, personalise experiences, and operate efficiently across markets.

The ability to:

create fashion visuals faster,
adapt them for different audiences, body types, and markets,
and scale content without scaling costs

is rapidly turning into a competitive baseline.

Whether you are supplementing existing photoshoots or moving toward fully virtual workflows, the transformation does not have to be disruptive to start.

You can start your AI transformation today with Retail Labs.