Abstract
Augmented reality (AR) technologies are revolutionising online fashion retail, yet limited research examines Generation Z experiences in Global South contexts. This constructivist grounded theory study investigated how AR fashion retail technologies influence South African Gen Z purchase experiences through fifteen semi-structured interviews with participants actively engaging luxury sunglasses platform AR virtual try-on features. Hybrid thematic analysis integrated deductive codes from five theoretical frameworks with inductively derived themes. The study's primary contribution is a process-orientated constructivist grounded theory revealing four sequential phases: initial embodied encounter generating virtual presence; iterative trust construction through self-verified visual evidence; hedonic habituation enabling identity exploration; and expectation normalisation creating competitive imperatives. Findings demonstrate AR fundamentally reconceptualises South African Gen Z purchase experiences by replacing brand-mediated trust with consumer-generated certainty, transforming transactional shopping into experiential play, and shifting AR from competitive differentiator to market survival necessity. The study therefore establishes new baseline expectations for brand relevance in digitally-mediated, fashion retail, emerging market contexts.