“D&G is at the dawn of a new era in the beauty category. Our goal is to carry the banner of innovation in the beauty category by strengthening our ability to identify and capture emerging trends through artificial intelligence.”

Elena Cerea, Global Marketing Director Makeup & Skincare at Dolce&Gabbana Beauty.

For Dolce&Gabbana Beauty, intellectual property is sacred. When their legal department was first approached about AI, there was some skepticism. But after working with Artefact’s data and artificial intelligence experts, D&G was able to turn what they initially viewed as untrustworthy into a significant competitive advantage over other players in the luxury goods industry.

Challenge: Leverage AI to anticipate and capture beauty trends and appeal to younger generations

Dolce&Gabbana, also known as D&G, was founded in 1985. The globally renowned Italian luxury fashion house is celebrated for its bold designs, Mediterranean-inspired aesthetics, and commitment to exceptional craftsmanship. The brand is aimed at an affluent clientele and includes high-end apparel, beauty products, fragrances, and more.

To attract younger generations, especially Gen Z, and even Generation Alpha [yes, 14-year-olds are buying beauty products!], Dolce&Gabbana decided to no longer be a licensee of major corporations and become an independent brand to enable more risk-taking and innovation.

“Being an indie brand allows us to intercept new trends. Through artificial intelligence, we can leverage predictive power to anticipate trends, developing globally scalable models applicable to all product categories and countries.”

Elena Cerea, Global Marketing Director Makeup & Skincare at Dolce&Gabbana Beauty.

Solution: Build and implement a concrete framework that separates trends from hype

Working with D&G’s team, Artefact’s data scientists developed an intuitive, AI-powered trendwatcher system that allows D&G to share insights across their teams. This approach enables D&G Beauty to strengthen its competitive edge, accelerate its go-to-market strategy, and incorporate innovations at every stage of the value chain.

“Working with D&G’s team, Artefact’s data scientists developed an intuitive, AI-powered trendwatcher system that allows D&G to share insights across their teams. This approach enables D&G Beauty to strengthen its competitive edge, accelerate its go-to-market strategy, and incorporate innovations at every stage of the value chain.”

Michele Caruso, Data & AI Consulting Partner at Artefact

The project was structured around three pillars:

  • Detection: What defines a trend? What differentiates hype from a true trend? How can fluctuations and oscillations be understood over time? These questions were answered by listening to vast amounts of open data from beauty influencers, specialized magazines, scientific articles, Google and Amazon searches, social media buzz, etc. These signals lay the foundation for early trend detection.

  • Prediction: What will be the magnitude, kinetic energy, and commercial potential of a given trend in one, two or three years? This required a 360° understanding of D&G Beauty’s business, right down to the components of its products, their packaging shapes, colors, fragrances, etc.

  • Interpretation: How can results be shared within D&G? To ensure sharability, Artefact created an intuitive dashboard that functions both in exploratory mode (are people talking about lactobacillus or aloe vera? When and how often?) and actionable mode (what high-impact commercial trends are being identified?)

“The challenge is to take bigger risks for greater outcomes. This was the foundation of our alignment with Dolce&Gabbana Beauty. The emphasis on concrete results and the quality of outcomes has always been our top priority, even before the aesthetics of the process.”

Michele Caruso, Data & AI Consulting Partner at Artefact

Conclusion: Beauty enhanced by the power of AI to help inform future trend decisions

The trendwatcher system developed by Artefact with D&G Beauty not only intercepts new trends but also strengthens research and development, communication, and supply chain optimization, allowing for long-term forecasting and improvements. For example:

  • By identifying trending ingredients like bakuchiol (a natural retinol alternative), the system enabled faster prototyping and time-to-market.

  • Precision insights about terms like “glass skin” allowed for tailored campaigns, resulting in a 20% increase in engagement rates.

  • Insights into the popularity of refillable lipstick cases guided eco-conscious product launches, aligning with consumer values.

“The ultimate goal is to balance the predictive power of machines with human creativity and foresight. To use the metaphor of a coffee machine, the difference often lies in the human touch that complements technology. This balance between artificial and human intelligence represents the strength of our project.”

Michele Caruso, Data & AI Consulting Partner at Artefact

Watch the replay of the Dolce&Gabbana x Artefact conference in Italian: