Integrating industry 4.0 and 5.0 technologies in luxury fashion retail interiors: A systematic review of digital transformation, sensory design, and brand storytelling

Abstract

Emerging developments in Industry 4.0 and Industry 5.0 are transforming the cultural, sensory, and experiential character of luxury fashion retail interiors. These changes, driven by artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, augmented and virtual reality, influence how individuals perceive space, form emotional connections, and engage with brand narratives across both physical and digitally enriched environments. Against this backdrop, this review aims to systematically synthesise how Industry 4.0 and Industry 5.0 technologies intersect with sensory experience, spatial design, and narrative expression in luxury fashion retail interiors, addressing the tendency of prior reviews to examine digital technologies or experiential aspects of retail in isolation. The study adopts a systematic literature review approach guided by the SPIDER framework and the PRISMA protocol. Fifty peer reviewed publications published between 2014 and 2025 were analysed to examine how digital transformation, sensory experience, and narrative expression intersect within luxury retail culture. The thematic analysis identified three closely connected areas: branding and customer experience, the interior environment of luxury stores, and the integration of advanced technologies within retail spaces. Together, these themes illustrate how contemporary luxury interiors operate as culturally expressive and emotionally charged settings shaped by new forms of technological mediation. Building on these insights, the study introduces the Multi-Layered Integration Framework, which explains the interaction between digital systems, spatial atmospheres, and brand storytelling in the creation of culturally responsive and human-centred retail interiors. The review contributes to the social sciences and humanities by demonstrating how emerging technologies reshape sensory engagement, symbolic identity, and cultural expression in luxury retail settings, while offering an expanded understanding of human experience within digitally influenced interior environments.