[TusharK]

Volkswagen India has partnered with the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) to design uniforms for the sales and service team.



As part of the ‘Dress up VW challenge’, the Fashion Design batch of 2020 had to submit attire designs for four categories, both male and female - Hostess, Sales Consultant / Service Advisors, Sales / Service Manager and Specialist. The designs had to be suitable for professional settings, be visually appealing, comfortable and convenient for employees to wear.



Out of all the entries, 10 were shortlisted. A 7-member jury picked 6 finalists from the shortlisted entries. Ms. Ankita Pattanath (NIFT Shillong), Ms. Bhavika Singla (NIFT Mumbai), Mr. Pratyush Panda (NIFT Gandhinagar), Ms. Priya (NIFT Patna), Ms. Shivani Priya (NIFT Mumbai) and Ms. Shiwani Priya (NIFT New Delhi) have been selected to create and present a prototype of their design. The finalists will be given 2 weeks to manufacture the prototypes.



The final round will be conducted on October 20, 2020 in Mumbai. The winner will be awarded Rs. 50,000. The runner-up will receive Rs. 30,000 and the third runner-up will receive Rs. 10,000.

[Latheesh]

Fancy showroom, stylish sales and service staffs selling what? - Cars like Polo and Vento which are >10 year old designs?

[fhdowntheline]

I think a simple T Shirt with VW Logo and semi-formal trousers or Indian formal dress for ladies should be good enough. VW is selling cars, not running an airline. If they are so service conscious, they might as well serve food and beverages in the dealerships.

Another point-None of these designs above are catering to a typical Indian body size (except perhaps the last one by Shivani Priya), they are only catering to a young/slim/toned body profile.

[Rajeevraj]

Oh so that is the root cause of VW's poor performance in India. It's staff not being dressed well!!

VW showroom staff have always been well turned out. They could have used the money for something more useful.

Good opportunity for the NIFT students though. Congratulations to the shortlisted folks.

[WorkingGuru]

Sad that such a shallow sense of work culture is being inculcated.

Enough people would say that there's NO such thing as inferior & superior work. Let the employees wear what they like, as long as it has a VW logo & conforms to a basic common rule/brand ethic.

Sorry for lashing out, it just felt wrong. Kindof like a shallow Colonial mindset blatantly segregating people.

[igemini]

In my humble opinion, more than the latest dress code/redesign what VW should emphasize more shall be on the total quality of services these dealerships offers. And also better co ordination between VW, Dealers and Customers. From my experience so far that coordination is lacking. Product portfolio and after sales are another.

In a lot of environments dress code does matters but I don't think it is having that much relevance for the subject concerned.

[Tassem]

Shocked at all the negativity around what seems to a nice gesture overall. Not just for wanting to improve on the showroom experience, but also for the boost this will give a young aspiring design student. VW could very well force lungi clad sales advisors and we'd still buy their products, flaws n all.

On topic, I really didn't like any of the design options in isolation. However, a mix of these would lend for a great dress code.

As for VW selling outdated designs, if we stop buying them, they'd stop selling them. Same thing with poor customer service or whatever. Stop putting up with it and it will change. This is a country that calls rusty brand new RE's as having character and are ok with calling it part of the lifestyle. Try doing that in a different country.

P.S I'm a bit biased because I still go weak in the knees when I see a shiny new Polo. Decade old or not, that design is timeless!

[Sk8r]

Looks like VW have got their priorities right !

[Utham123]

This is a car forum and I kind of understand all the negative comments, but, I don't see anything wrong with this activity. For, all we know this just could be an initiative to encourage young fashion students and be part of their education.

Personally, I do not care much how the staff dress as long as they provide me a good service. I must admit though, the Renault showroom in Whitefield Bangalore have well designed uniforms which look fashinable. It kind of added to the ocerall experience of the showroom. The staff were also courteous and helpful.
PS: I am aware of the recent issue our fellow BHPian faced with handling charges at this showroom. My appreciation for their dress code is not to be taken as me approving of their work ethic.

[batladanny]

Hate that such exploitation is becoming increasingly common in the design field.

Large corporates who can pay well for such services stoop to organizing a "competition" where they have 100s of students slogging for them and getting the work done for a paltry 90k.

Absolutely bad behaviour from VW.

[viXit]

Originally Posted by Latheesh

Fancy showroom, stylish sales and service staffs selling what? - Cars like Polo and Vento which are >10 year old designs?

Sir,

The things you say resonate so well with the character in your avatar!
So true yet so hurtful.

VW is very smartly spending maybe a lakh at most and getting the best design students to work for them.. but I think few have misunderstood what specialist meant. I think it's the mechs. While some have adorned them with ties.... is it to wipe off spilt oil?

[400notout]

Originally Posted by TusharK

The final round will be conducted on October 20, 2020 in Mumbai. The winner will be awarded Rs. 50,000. The runner-up will receive Rs. 30,000 and the third runner-up will receive Rs. 10,000.

So Volkswagen uses formula number 44. There was a time when I was working on designs for a project. One of my employees came up with this simple suggestion. "Sir, ek art college ko pakdo aur competition announce karo 100 designs milenge aur winner ko Rs. 5000 dedo, bohot saare option mil jayenge paisa bhi bachega" ( sir, get hold of an art college and announce a competition you will get 100 designs. Pay 5k to the winner and you will get a sea of options.)

So VW has shortlisted these options for 90k. Certainly much cheaper than hiring a renowned design agency.

I should check whether that employee of mine is at a managerial position at VW

[adneo]

So its just not cars, now gimmicks are taking higher priorites above technically awar technicians and mechanics. I guess VW would have done wayyy better if they decided to educate their teams better for their roles than dressing them!
What a pity, after all the show and pomp if the car keep failing, is all the investment really worth it? Does it really help in elevating the customer experience?!
This entite automotive generation is passing through a phase of misguided priorities.
People / OEM/ Auto Journalists love to quote 0-100 figures of cars and conveniently forget the need to take note of the 100-0 figures and distances.

[KPR]

Well done VW. In few companies, these staff aren't paid much to buy executive clothing. Better that VW provide them with such uniform so that staff can save money wasted in buying dresses for their daily work.

[tanbeamer]

Originally Posted by 400notout

So Volkswagen uses formula number 44. There was a time when I was working on designs for a project. One of my employees came up with this simple suggestion. "Sir, ek art college ko pakdo aur competition announce karo 100 designs milenge aur winner ko Rs. 5000 dedo, bohot saare option mil jayenge paisa bhi bachega" ( sir, get hold of an art college and announce a competition you will get 100 designs. Pay 5k to the winner and you will get a sea of options.)

So VW has shortlisted these options for 90k. Certainly much cheaper than hiring a renowned design agency.

I should check whether that employee of mine is at a managerial position at VW

Whatever said and done, this is a good move by VW in my opinion. Not only fellow students like me will get a lot of encouragement but also it will help VW to get things done at a highly competitive cost. Instead of spreading negativity we should laud VW for involving college students and giving them a hands on experience.