Trend forecasting tops automakers' priority to gaze into the future

A long gestation period of product development, rapidly changing buying behaviour and a heightening competition make it inevitable for automakers to foresee a trend ahead of a new model launch

Looks like a dream. But it's a job. Four years back, when Tata Motors started etching out company's new design philosophy (Impact 2.O) that would shape its future cars, Pratap Bose, Head of Design at the firm, hired people with a diktat to spend less time in office and rather walk the streets of Delhi, Mumbai, Tokyo and London to peek into people’s lifestyle – food habits, clothing, choice of beverage, etc to determine finer aspects in car design such as the size of cup holders, cubby holes in future Tata cars. These trend researchers who hail from design schools and have an art and sociology background are the latest eyes and ears for auto companies to stay ahead in the competitive race.

“We started hiring them four years back when we started work on Impact 2.0 platform. Their inputs have hugely contributed to upcoming Omega and Alpha platforms (Tata Motors new advance modular platform that will underpin its future line-up),” Bose pointed out. These inputs which give a peek into the future trends are really critical and ensures the car design resonates with the contemporary trends by the time its ready to go on sale and doesn’t become obsolete, he added.

These researchers even take note of emerging underground trend, said Bose. It may be very small, almost negligible but we know that some of it will become mainstream in the next four years,” he added.

A long gestation period of product development, rapidly changing buying behaviour and a heightening competition makes it inevitable for automakers to predict and foresee a trend appropriately ahead of a new model launch. Typically, it takes anywhere between three to five years for a completely new model, developed ground up, to cover the distance from the drawing board to the showrooms.  The move is also prompted by homegrown firms like Tata Motors and Mahindra and Mahindra looking to enhance their global presence.

“The success of an automobile is dependent on a good product planner, somebody who is able to foresee unmet needs of the customers, and visualise what’s going to happen 10 years later,” says ace automobile designer, Dilip Chhabria.

A rapidly changing demography which is skewed towards younger buyers is also prompting companies to monitor trends a lot more closely said CV Raman, executive director, engineering at Maruti Suzuki India. “When we were developing the Brezza (compact SUV) a lot of inputs were about what the youth wants,” said Raman. Some of these translated into vital design and styling elements. 

“Last four years, our communication (in terms of styling and design) has been very distinct,” said Raman. Maruti is no longer using family faces (familiar designs) and each model bears a unique design, he added citing an instance of the third generation Dzire. “It has completely changed the proportions of a sedan and not a hatch converted into a sedan. We are constantly innovating,” he added. Raman and his teams’ efforts have paid off. A robust demand of both models has helped the market leader fortify its position in India’s passenger vehicle market. 

Bose said while Impact 1.O—the design language which shaped the Nexon, Tiago and Hexa, was about getting younger, newer type of buyers into the showrooms, Impact 2.O will take it to the next level with its stunning design, greater global appeal, proportion and safety. 

The trend researchers at Tata Motors have even taken a cue from veganism which is clearly a move away from aggression. “The H5X concept (Tata Harrier) is a very strong and muscular car but it doesn’t look like it’s going to run you over, kick you out. While you want to be strong, you don’t want to be aggressive,” said Bose.

The trend of companies hiring researchers will get further traction said DC Design’s Chhabria. As Indian buyers are a “special breed.” While they are Asians, unlike a Japan or Korea, they have a unique sensibility towards European design and this calls for special skills that can strike the fine balance between the two.

Anand Sharma, co-founder and director at Studio34 Designart, a Gurgaon-based independent design studio, says “Design in India and Indian design are always in a conflict.” India has evolved as a society through aesthetics rather than being rooted in design much like Europe or America that has standard operating procedure for its creativity. 

Ramkripa Ananthan, chief designer at Mahindra adds that trend research has always been a very important aspect of the design process at Mahindra. It is critical in a world that’s rapidly evolving due to globalization, digitalization and alternate energy. While 10 years back, you could have predicted one trend, now there is a multiplicity of trends, with shorter spans. 

However, with a widening portfolio that reaches across the globe and across the demography of the country, there will be a shift in the company’s design philosophy, said Ananthan. “While the core design identity remains strongly rooted in our values, there will be a comprehensive shift across all parameters of exteriors, interiors, colour, material and finish to create a compelling design that appeals to a wider range of customers,” she said.