Apparel Group Launches AI Shopping App AIVI in Six Gulf Markets
AIVI pairs personalized recommendations, virtual try-on and the Club AIVI loyalty programme across more than 200,000 products in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman.
Apparel Group has launched AIVI, a shopping app built around artificial intelligence, in all six Gulf Cooperation Council markets: the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman. The company, headquartered in the UAE, sells fashion and lifestyle products across the region. Sima Ved founded the group and serves as its chairwoman. The app is available for download on iOS and Android in each market.
What the app does
AIVI carries more than 200,000 fashion and lifestyle products and targets a customer base of over 15 million people across the Gulf.
Recommendations come from a mix of AI and customer data. The app reads stated preferences, previous purchases and search history, then puts forward products that fit the pattern. An in-app assistant handles both text and voice commands, so a shopper can ask for outfit suggestions tied to a specific occasion, request styling advice, or have it gather complementary accessories to finish a look.
Virtual try-on runs on photographs. A user uploads an existing picture or takes a new one inside the app, then previews how a chosen garment is likely to sit before paying for it.
Loyalty and delivery
Club AIVI, the loyalty programme previously known as Club Apparel, covers more than 2,600 stores, over 85 international brands and 14 countries. Members earn and redeem rewards on eligible purchases online, in physical stores, and at food and beverage outlets.
Delivery is fast on selected products: 60 minutes in the UAE, 90 minutes in the rest of the GCC.
Executive comment
Neeraj Teckchandani, Group CEO of Apparel Group, described the release as "a defining milestone" for the company. He said the group has built an extensive network of stores and brands, along with a deep understanding of regional consumers, and that AIVI brings those assets together with AI, data and technology for retail that is smarter and better connected. The app is designed around individual customer needs, he said.
Vivek Rajukumar, chief executive of AIVI, put the premise plainly. Shopping, he said, is "a human experience" with a particular kind of enjoyment attached to it. AIVI was built as an intelligent companion, he said, not simply another e-commerce platform. It learns a customer's tastes and puts forward suitable items before the customer asks. Technology applied with care adds to the pleasure of shopping rather than removing it.
A launch song
The release includes an original track, "Own Your Vibe (3ala Jawwak)", performed by Saudi singer Zena Emad and Indian rapper Karma. It is multilingual — Arabic, Hindi and English — and distributed by Warner Music MENA. A music video and a digital campaign accompany it.
Retail groups with large physical estates have reason to keep shoppers inside their own apps. A loyalty scheme spanning thousands of stores gives Apparel Group a base to work from, and folding that scheme into the same app as product discovery and 60-minute delivery keeps both the first search and the final purchase on the company's own terms, rather than handing either to a marketplace or a quick-commerce rival.
Club Apparel members open AIVI with their current credentials. No separate sign-up, no new account. That places an established rewards base inside the app from its first day.
