Fibre2Fashion Mentions First Insight | Interview With Greg Petro
Industry-leading predictive analytics platform First Insight is revolutionising how retailers and brands make product, pricing, and assortment decisions. Founded with the mission to bring the voice of the customer into the earliest stages of the retail value chain, First Insight empowers businesses to test concepts before launch, using real-time, structured consumer feedback and proprietary AI models. From luxury giants to value-driven retailers, clients use the platform to optimise offerings, reduce markdowns, and move at the speed of the market. Speaking to Fibre2Fashion, CEO Greg Petro shares how First Insight’s forward-looking approach is helping brands make smarter decisions, navigate volatile consumer behaviour, and build more sustainable, profitable, and customer-aligned strategies.
Q: First Insight pioneered the use of predictive analytics in the retail space. How has the platform evolved since its inception to address today’s dynamic consumer expectations?
A: Since our founding, First Insight has always focused on using data to bring the voice of the customer into decision-making. Our platform provides forward-looking, predictive insights by combining real-time consumer feedback with artificial intelligence, rather than relying solely on historical sales data. We enable retailers to drive new customer acquisition and innovation by testing products, pricing, packaging, and marketing concepts before they launch.
As the pace of change accelerates, whether from TikTok-driven trends, macroeconomic shocks like tariffs, or regional demand shifts, our platform provides the agility brands need to stay ahead. We demonstrate how products will perform in-market based on actual consumer input, enabling teams to make confident decisions rooted in real consumer demand.
Q: Can you elaborate on the role of consumer-tested data in First Insight’s platform? How does it differ from traditional retail analytics based on historical sales data?
A: Instead of relying on historical sales data, which only tells retailers how their customers felt in the past, we capture direct consumer feedback on new products before they launch, enabling retailers to predict demand, optimise pricing, and improve product-market fit—before any inventory is committed.
Beyond just purchase intent, First Insight helps businesses understand how consumers perceive value, so they simulate scenarios and reduce guesswork. It is a more strategic, customer-centric approach that mitigates risk and boosts profitability.
Q: What differentiates First Insight’s Voice of the Customer solutions from other retail tech platforms offering similar features?
A: First Insight’s Voice of the Customer solution is unique because it is not based on past purchases—it is based on what real consumers think and feel about products, even before they launch. Whether it is a children’s backpack or a drugstore lipstick, we bring consumer feedback into the earliest stages of decision-making—across pricing, product design, packaging, and more.
We quantify that feedback into our proprietary Value Score, a forward-looking metric that ranks products from 1 to 10 based on predicted market performance. This gives retailers and brands a clear signal of demand and value perception, helping them prioritise winners, avoid costly misses, and improve margin across the assortment.
What truly sets us apart is our ability to help brands not just react—but predict. Most AI tools can summarise feedback. First Insight tells you what is likely to happen next, and why. That is how our customers win new audiences, expand into new categories, and deepen loyalty by staying aligned with what people truly want—before they ask for it. It is innovation, accelerated by insight. And no other platform can deliver that level of predictive clarity.
Q: Your platform enables retailers to make smarter products, pricing, and planning decisions. Can you share a recent example where your technology directly impacted on a client’s bottom line or decision-making strategy?
A: We have seen our platform make a measurable impact across a wide range of retail partners, but two recent examples stand out.
At Marks & Spencer, one of the UK’s most iconic retailers, our partnership has been instrumental in driving their digital transformation across all Clothing & Home categories. By leveraging First Insight’s platform to develop products and align assortments with customer preferences, M&S has seen products tested through our platform outperform others with a 12 per cent higher sell-through rate. As their Head of Digital Product Development noted, these results are helping them make more confident decisions earlier in the product lifecycle—ultimately fuelling better margins and less waste. Their Managing Director summarised it well: “First Insight’s AI-driven intelligence has empowered us to get closer to our customers and offer a more compelling fashion-led experience as we seek to become more relevant, to more people, more often.”
Similarly, Family Dollar, part of the Dollar Tree family of brands, adopted our platform to enhance their merchandise strategy across a value-driven assortment. Within weeks, they began using our insights to guide assortment and pricing decisions that reflect what their customers value most. For a business that runs on precision and margin efficiency, the ability to align with customer demand in real time has been a powerful differentiator.
Q: With growing focus on personalisation and AI, how does First Insight ensure that the data it analyses reflects both current trends and deeper consumer sentiment?
A: You cannot rely on historical data alone to make decisions anymore. That is why First Insight collects real-time feedback directly from consumers through digital engagements, then uses AI to rapidly process and model that input. Our platform does not just track what is trending today, it uncovers why shoppers feel a certain way about a product or price point and what they are likely to do next.
We can deliver insights to our customers in as little as 24 to 48 hours. They can gain a holistic view of consumer behaviour that spans both short-term demand shifts and long-term value drivers, enabling more precise decisions at every stage of the product lifecycle.
Q: With AI and machine learning at the core of your offering, how is First Insight addressing issues around algorithmic bias or data integrity?
A: First Insight is built on zero-party data—structured, real-time input collected directly from consumers. Unlike platforms that rely on inferred behaviours, scraped data, or generative content, our insights are grounded in actual customer feedback. This eliminates concerns around hallucinations and significantly reduces algorithmic bias.
Our AI and machine learning models are purpose-built for retail and continuously validated—not just against sentiment or sell-through, but against real financial outcomes. Because our platform ties predictive results directly to revenue, margin, and pro forma scenarios, we are able to demonstrate that our models consistently deliver high accuracy where it matters most: to the bottom line.
We also maintain strict data integrity standards, with safeguards like geoIP validation, reCAPTCHA, deny lists, and backend anomaly detection. And as a SOC 2, GDPR, and CCPA-compliant platform, clients can trust that our insights are secure, responsible, and built for enterprise use.
Q: Many of your clients are global retailers and brands. How does First Insight adapt its technology and insights for varied geographies and cultural contexts?
A: Built to scale globally, First Insight’s platform reaches consumers in 60+ languages and currencies—enabling culturally relevant insights across regions. Whether it is assessing price sensitivity in Brazil or gauging design preferences in Japan, we help businesses adapt their strategies to local expectations. The major retailers and brands who rely on our data trust us to successfully tap into the minds of consumers anywhere, anytime.
Retailers can use these insights to tailor assortments, pricing strategies, and/or marketing tactics with multi-dimensional segmentation—options including demographics (age, income, language etc), psychographics (lifestyle, values, interests), behavioural data (buying habits, brand loyalty), and geographical factors at regional and local levels.
This localisation—grounded in consumer data—helps global brands act with the speed and accuracy of a local retailer.
Q: Sustainability is increasingly becoming a retail imperative. How does First Insight help brands make environmentally responsible decisions using predictive analytics?
A: Sustainability is not just about using recycled materials or reducing carbon emissions, it starts with making better decisions from the outset. At First Insight, we help retailers and brands eliminate waste before it happens by using predictive analytics to ensure the right products are developed, produced, and priced, based on what consumers want.
One of the biggest contributors to environmental waste in retail is unsold inventory. Products that do not resonate with consumers end up deeply discounted, returned, or discarded entirely, costing both the business and the environment. We help businesses avoid this by digitally testing new product concepts, designs, and price points before they are produced, using real consumer feedback to predict which items will perform best in the market.
By making these decisions right early in the product lifecycle, our clients reduce overproduction, cut back on costly markdowns, and limit their environmental footprint. In short, better data leads to better decisions, which leads to less waste. That is the foundation of a truly sustainable retail strategy.
Q: With the rise of conscious consumerism, how can retail analytics tools help brands align more closely with consumer values like sustainability and transparency?
A: Conscious consumerism is real—but it is rarely straightforward. Consumers increasingly say sustainability and transparency matter, but First Insight’s data shows most are not willing to pay more for those attributes. That creates tension for retailers and brands who want to do the right thing but also need to protect margin and move products.
At the same time, the stakes are rising. Public companies are facing growing pressure from investors, regulators, and lawmakers—through sustainability mandates, disclosure requirements, and even potential fines or carbon-related costs. So, it is not just about what the consumer says, it is about weighing those values alongside financial and operational realities.
First Insight helps brands navigate that complexity. Our platform quantifies specific sustainability claims—like recyclable packaging, ethical sourcing, or carbon neutrality—impact perceived value and willingness to pay across different customer segments. That means brands can identify where values drive demand, and where they may require cost trade-offs or strategic justification.
Ultimately, we help companies make smarter, more balanced decisions, aligning with customer expectations, regulatory pressure, and profitability. It is about building a sustainable brand in every sense of the word.
Q: How is the shift towards omnichannel and experiential retail changing the type of data retailers need to prioritise and analyse?
A: Omnichannel retail is not just about connecting stores and e-commerce anymore, it is about keeping pace with a non-linear, influence-driven customer journey. Social shopping, viral moments, and community-driven discovery are reshaping how consumers make decisions—often before a brand even realises, they are being considered or rejected.
Retailers cannot afford to wait for sales data, online reviews, or negative comments to understand what is working. The real opportunity lies in capturing the wisdom of the crowd before it goes public. That is what First Insight does best. We predict winners and losers before products hit the floor, the feed, or the shelf—so brands can double down on what resonates and course-correct early.
Our platform helps retailers analyse pre-purchase behaviour, sentiment, and value perception across every touchpoint—whether it is a product on TikTok, a promotional email, a homepage layout, or an instore endcap. We even test visual merchandising to understand what drives attention and action in both physical and digital environments.
In today’s omnichannel world, the smartest brands are prioritising the data that comes before the click, before the comment, before the return. That is how you stay ahead—by knowing what the customer values before they even say it out loud.
Q: In an era where consumer loyalty is increasingly fragmented, what data-driven strategies can retailers adopt to retain and engage customers effectively?
A: In an era where consumer loyalty is fragile and fleeting, the most effective strategy is simple: know your customer better than anyone else—and act on what they value. That means moving beyond historical data or general sentiment and capturing real-time input on what they want, what they are willing to pay, and what will make them walk away.
Our ‘Tariffs & Trust’ study revealed just how quickly loyalty can shift—74 per cent of US shoppers said if prices rose, they would not hesitate to switch to a private label and stop purchasing some of their favourite national brands. That is not theoretical. It is a reminder that today’s shopper is always evaluating value—and brands must earn their trust every time they bring something to market.
First Insight helps retailers do exactly that. We empower teams to test product ideas, pricing, packaging, and messaging before launch—so they can deliver with confidence, reduce risk, and align every decision with what the customer wants.
Because today, loyalty is not about gimmicks or points. It is earned through relevance—by showing up with the right offer, at the right time, in the right way—again.
Q: You have built strong partnerships with companies across fashion, footwear, and even luxury retail. What is some sector-specific insights or trends that you have seen emerge from this diverse clientele?
A: In June, we released findings from our recent study titled ‘Tariffs & Trust: Why Retailers Risk Loyalty with Price Hikes,’ which found a clear connection between consumer sensitivity to cost increases (especially tariff-related changes) and their willingness to buy fashion and apparel items. In fact, according to the US shoppers who we surveyed, fashion was the main category most shoppers noted they would cut back on first if prices rise, with 53 per cent ranking it first.
Additionally, as economic conditions remain unpredictable, the stigma around generic or ‘dupe’ products, especially in fashion, footwear, and apparel, is lessening. We conducted a study on private labels earlier this summer, titled ‘The Quiet Takeover of Private Label,’ that noted 45 per cent of consumers have permanently switched from a national brand to private label when the product met or exceeded expectations, highlighting the shifting bar for product quality and marketing.
These trends show that even in traditionally brand-driven categories, consumers are prioritising value and quality over labels. Retailers must balance pricing strategies, product design, and marketing to meet these shifting expectations—or risk losing share to more agile competitors. Today’s global economy is perhaps more volatile than ever and listening to consumers should be the number one priority when any decisions are made.
Q: What are some common mistakes retailers make when interpreting consumer data, and how can they avoid these pitfalls?
A: One of the most common and costly mistakes retailers make is not just misinterpreting consumer data—it is failing to activate it across the organisation. Insights often get stuck in silos: owned by one team, interpreted by another, and left out of the hands of the people making decisions on products, pricing, and planning. That fragmentation leads to misaligned strategies, slower execution, and products that miss the mark.
Another major pitfall is relying on outdated or overly generalised data. Historical sales and lagging indicators cannot keep up with shifting consumer expectations, especially in a world where preferences change overnight due to economic pressures, social influence, or competitive moves.
At First Insight, we help retailers solve both problems. Our platform captures real-time consumer feedback before products go to market and turns it into predictive insights tied directly to financial outcomes. But just as importantly, we make those insights accessible and usable across the business— creating a shared system of intelligence that connects teams around the customer. When every function speaks the same language—grounded in data, not opinions—retailers move faster, invest smarter, and execute with confidence.
The retailers leading the next era are not just listening to customers, they are operationalising that feedback across every decision, from the C-suite to the shelf.
Q: Looking ahead, what innovations or expansions are in the pipeline for First Insight in terms of product development, industry verticals, or global reach?
A: We continue to see strong demand for First Insight across apparel, footwear, home goods, and accessories—our core categories. But we are also seeing more rapid expansion into new sectors, especially in consumer-packaged goods (CPG), grocery, convenience retail, and private label. As private labels continue to compete head-to-head with national brands, the ability to launch the right products at the right price has never been more critical. Clients in these segments are turning to First Insight to better understand consumer preferences, win market share, and build brand affinity.
Innovation is central to our growth and to our customers’ success. We are focused on enabling faster, more accurate, and financially informed decision-making across the product lifecycle. Key areas of advancement include:
- AI-powered decision workflows that make insight more actionable across product, pricing, planning, and marketing teams.
- Pro forma modelling tools that link consumer value signals directly to margin, revenue, and inventory forecasts—so teams can see the financial impact of their decisions before they commit.
- Conversational analytics that give users instant access to insight data, trend signals, and pricing scenarios—using natural language to get real-time clarity and speed up decision cycles.
These innovations are helping retailers and brands act with greater precision, move faster than the competition, and create experiences that resonate deeply with their customers—all while improving financial outcomes and reducing risk.
Q: How do you see the role of AI and predictive analytics evolving in the retail industry over the next five years?
A: In the next five years, AI will not just support retail; it will shape who leads it. The winners will not be the ones who simply adopt AI. They will be the ones who use it to invent faster, act smarter, and still stay perfectly aligned with what their customers want.
Retailers that succeed will be able to connect the dots between consumer demand, pricing, product design, and brand experience—before anything hits the shelf. They will use AI not just to optimise what exists, but to create what is next: the right idea, the right price, the right moment. And that takes more than automation or scraping yesterday’s data. It demands models trained in real feedback, built to predict what will win, and wired to drive decisions at scale.
That is exactly what we have built at First Insight. With 18 years of consumer data training behind us, we create proprietary AI engines for each brand—customised to their attributes, their categories, and their customers. It becomes a living, evolving system that powers their own trend engine, pricing strategy, and innovation roadmap. No guesswork. No generic prompts. Just AI that delivers creative precision and measurable impact.
The future of retail belongs to those who can move fast and stay connected. That is what First Insight does best—and what no off-the-shelf model ever will.
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