THE PHILIPPINE Retailers Association (PRA) said the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) in retail will not lead to the decline of brick-and-mortar stores, countering fears that smarter online shopping could drive Filipinos away from malls.
“They say that people won’t come to malls anymore [because of AI]but Filipinos as a whole are still very social creatures. We’re all social citizens, and we go to malls to truly interact with one another,” PRA President Alice T. Liu told reporters on the sidelines of an event on Thursday last week.
“Although some purchases may shift online, we believe malls will continue to be places where people will still congregate.”
PRA Chairman Roberto S. Claudio noted that AI will only drive growth in the country’s retail sector.
“Over the last five years, retail has been growing by 10% to 15%, and that’s without the use of AI,” Mr. Claudio said. “So next year, as [retailers] adopt AI, I think growth will be even greater — higher than 10% to 15% — depending on how well they use AI.”
Ms. Liu noted AI’s potential to create new positions and roles in the industry, citing the need for upskilling and investment in data management.
“There will be jobs that will be replaced by AI, but there will also be new roles and positions created that will give others opportunities to grow in this field,” she said.
“We are hoping that companies will invest in cleaning up their data, getting their data architecture ready for AI implementation, and at the same time, building a workforce that is more comfortable with using AI,” Ms. Liu added.
The Metro Manila retail sector is expected to deliver about 300,000 square meters of new retail space between this year and 2030, according to real estate consultancy firm JLL Philippines. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz
