Nearly three quarters of retail staff have no experience of using AI in their role, according to new research by Find Out Now on behalf of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).
In a poll of 500 UK retail employees, 72% questioned said they never use AI at work. 19% said they rarely use the tools, 9% often and just 1% always. The research also highlights a lack of training, with 89% of employees saying that they haven’t received any AI coaching. Only 7% said they had been given personal AI training.
When asked how often their organisation as a whole use AI in its operations, 26% said never, 11% said rarely, 11% said often, 50% were not sure – and only 2% said always.
The data paints a challenging picture for the retail sector, just as AI adoption across business is increasing. BCC research published in September showed that over a third of SMEs (35%) say they are actively using AI technology, up from 25% in 2024.
In October the BCC launched the AI Academy, powered by Pair. The service provides role-specific upskilling that ensures AI becomes embedded in daily workflows, not just learnt in theory.
David Bharier, head of research at the British Chambers of Commerce, said: “This poll brings real, on-the-ground, staff-level data. And while recent BCC research is showing rising AI uptake among SMEs in general, this fresh data clearly shows that uptake is clearly uneven across sectors.
“Most retail workers report having little or no opportunity to use AI tools, so they simply aren’t seeing or benefiting from deployment. That said, if AI adoption follows an S-curve – as it has in other industries – those opportunities may well arrive soon, so it is imperative businesses on the ground get ahead of the curve.”
Tyron Surmon, head of research at Find Out Now, said: “This research shows that while AI dominates the news, adoption on the ground is often much slower.
“Given adoption of AI tools is only likely to increase over time, this is a clear call to action for those businesses who don’t currently use it in their operations, to start doing so”
Dr James Khuht MBE, chief executive of Pair, said: “AI works best when it’s broadly adopted and integrated into people’s everyday jobs. In retail, employees often come up with creative AI applications that their employers – or outside experts – could never have imagined.
“We’ve seen everything from marketing magazine development to store layout optimisation, and an average time saving of 2+ hours a week. But this requires the tools and the training to get them started.
“We hope this research can kickstart an urgent push to ensure British retailers, and their employees, don’t get left behind on AI.”
