[vidyabhushan]

The forum is full of anecdotes as how some dealership didnt pay adequate attention to a prospective buyer because of his/her appearance.

While some of these instances can be attributed to safety (viz. a Harley dealer in Pune refusing test ride to prospects turning up in shorts and slippers), most instances (especially in luxury car buying) are related to 'profiling' i.e. how a sales advisor interprets prospect's appearance to judge how much attention should be awarded to the prospect.

Knowing how some of us have felt when at the receiving end, I am inviting your views on the topic, hoping this also helps us realise the dealership's perspective.

Are the dealerships justified in demanding a dress code?

I could think of some reasons / scenarios:

1. When dress code is associated with security for instance heavy bikes like Harley are simply unsafe to be ridden in shorts and slippers

2. Luxury car dealerships associating your purchase power by your appearance - this cannot be justified, but perhaps empathized with. Being in Sales role myself (although an entirely different kind of sales), I do understand the importance of 'qualifying' a lead. When you are selling to an organisation (B2B), its easy to research about the organization and qualify. Even in B2B sales, only 10-15% of the opportunities / leads actually convert to a Sale. In a retail sales scenario (B2C or C2C), you can only qualify a prospect based on appearances - this kind of profiling is subjective and can easily go wrong, and sales advisors are often aware of the risks.
To explain this a bit further, a typical luxury car dealership probably receives enquiries of which only 5% are customers with real intent to buy and purchase power too. These 5% would perhaps make their choice between several luxury brands on offer. For instance, assuming I have the money and intent to buy myself a 40-50 Lakhs luxury car, I would visit Merc, BMW, Audi, Jaguar, Volvo and the likes. So despite being a qualified prospect, the probablity of any one brand selling me a car is only 15-20%. For a dealer, this means that only 5% of footfalls are qualified prospects of which perhaps one-fifth will actually become customer. So footfall to sale ratio is perhaps 1-2%.

Of course these numbers are hypthetical and vary by city, brand, time of the year and several other factors. But I hope it helps us see things from a service advisor's perspective.

Some Best Practices that better your chance of getting a good buy experience

1. Appearances matter: You may be the customer here, but your chances of getting due attention will only get better if you appear to be a genuine prospect with real interest. This is especially true for first meetings. Appearance is a loosely used term here, and doesnt refer to your dressing style alone, but any indicators of your purchase power and interest in buying. Dealerships offering test drive vehicle at your house / office, can also meet this objective.

2. Be Honest and upfront: If you are only enquiring for experience / knowledge / on someone else's behalf, be upfront and moderate in your expectations. I have done several enquiries on behalf of my parents / in-laws etc. and almost every time, dealerships did understand my role as 'influencer' if not the 'buyer', and I got the same treatment as a prospect buyer would. If you intend to make a buy decision in 3 months or longer, please be transparent. SAs often come up with limited time offers, valid for this month only, which I got for the car eventually bought 4 months later.

3. Discuss the car and dealership's offers etc. but let the Service Advisor offer you a test drive (dont ask for it) - this is also to the buyer's advantage. SA offering test drive means he/she considers you a qualified prospect and willing / flexible to make a sale. A prospective buyer could use this to his / her advantage in the negotiation.

4. Do your homework on the car - BHPians dont need to be told this, but get to know the car you wish to purchase. Even if you arent a car guy, basic idea of price bracket, luxury segment, top features, similar cars from competition etc. are easy to gather from a few YouTube videos. Your pre-read about the car also shows how serious you are about this potential purchase. Dont be afraid to mention a couple other cars you are considering and what you like about those cars. On the personal front, gather your thoughts around the budget (downpayment, loan planned etc.), so you get straight to business with the SA

Please feel free to add your thoughts and inputs !!

[ABHI_1512]

Would have loved to answer point by point but would like to keep it straight and simple. The best practises that you mentioned is already there in the forum, so would not go there at all.
The moot question is whether appearances matter or not and whether dress code influences the seller or not. Something tells me that if someone wants to buy a car, the salesman looks for intent of the buyer and not necessarily the dress code !!

Of course, being presentable matters but at the end of the day, what matters is the knowledge of the vehicle that one intends to buy. If someone is well versed with the specifications of the prospective vehicle, half the job is done there itself.

I, if one can believe, have often visited showrooms wearing casual cloths and sandals even and the salesmen have taken me seriously. And I have seen many serious buyers doing that as well. Also, the attention given was almost at par with market standards as well

Being snobbish doesn’t work in Sales and here, I often quote to everyone a dialogue from the famous movie ‘Pretty Woman’ where Richard Gere famously said and I quote stores are never nice to people, they are nice to credit cards !!

I think one can make out what I intend to say, doesn’t matter what one decipher’s though

[Everlearner]

Dress code is only 1 part of the your presentation. The way you speak and behave also matters a lot. I understand the need for qualifying a lead based on appearance as that's the only information the sales person have immediately after seeing a person, but this is very tricky now a days. Ultra rich people many times roam around in casual wear and is easy to be misunderstood as something else. When you go to a upscale restaurant, its a common sight that the rich patrons are in casual attire like shorts + slippers where as the serving and cleaning staff will be suited up smartly. That should be the biggest challenge of a sales job to gauge a customer with first impression. Its more of a knack than set of rules.

[VKumar]

Whoever is concerned about the dress code for buying a car, all they need to search is:

"Sam Kapasi Team-BHP" on Google. His buying experiences, ownership reviews and the incidents he shared, they will answer every single question on this topic.

Imagine GTO telling his family (Not literally of course) "some big funny looking chap would take the cover off the jeep and sit in it for a while (YetiBlog® - My Land Rover Discovery)"

[doxinboy]

Though not a luxury brand, for my purchase of over a two million rupee car, I walked to various showrooms in a chappel and typical lower middle class attaire, just to see how the suites would treat me. In some dealership, I could already sense fatigue even before I uttered a single word, but in another dealership ,a very young sales rep, an intern, I guess, delighted me with his demeanor and I felt good and handed my wallet.

OT: I learnt something a long time ago when I was shopping for clothes in Shoppers Stop. A very senior gentleman, perhaps a senior manager or something, with black suit surrounded by 6 to 7 young suited gentlemen were waiting for the elevator. I was standing along with them too, with my shopping bag. But as soon as the elevator door popped open, some men tried to rush in, but the senior gentleman asked them to stand away and as these people stood on either side of the door looking at me to enter, with the senior person making a hand gestures with humility. They didn't join me and I felt like a king.

I expect the same treatment from automobile sector too. It doesn't matter if I want to purchase the car or not, If I have landed in their showroom, it means I am a prospective family member and the onus will be on them to treat me with dignity rather than being judgmental about the clothes I wear.

My two cents

[Shreyans_Jain]

Pre purchase dealership experience is generally fair and pleasant across the board. You do have the occasional unprofessional or judgemental salesman, but that is something that transcends all brands. I have never visited any dealership formally dressed ever. My usual off work attire is shorts and t shirts, and I have had decent interactions with all kinds of salespeople in that, from Maruti to Mercedes. It is more about your body language and the way you conduct yourself than your clothes. Ditto for high end stores in the mall.

On a related note, I’ve had the habit of enjoying an espresso at a 5 star hotel every now and then, since my college then. Even back then, when we looked like typical college kids driving dad’s old WagonR with the CNG cylinder for the world to see in the security check, the experience was always good. Appearances don’t matter when your credit card speaks for you.

There is one brand I will single out for being unnecessary snooty in all my interactions with it. Volkswagen. Multiple dealerships across multiple states. Man, those guys are like we only want to sell to the senior management of MNCs type people. I being a business owner don’t fit the stereotype. Needless to say, my garage been VW free. Maybe it is something in their training. They can keep their ‘we are German, superior than you’ attitude, I’ll take my business elsewhere.

[gkveda]

The whole world looks at dress and evaluate the person's capabilities. Is it right or wrong? Its a definitely debatable.

There is a sanskrit shloka

पीताम्बरं वीक्ष्य ददौ स्वकन्यां दिगम्बराय विषं समुद्रः

Meaning: Looking at the golden colour dress(of Vishnu) the ocean king gave his daughter (Lakshmi) and by looking at shiva(with tiger skinned clothes), he gave poison.

So, this discrimination must have been there from ancient times. Hence, the poet has written above lines sarcastically. But in recent times, I have not seen this issue popping up, specifically after IT boom. Nobody cares for the type of dress code of customers except in government offices like RTOs or sub-registrar office. Most of my car or bike purchases and loans in banks have been completed with my night pants and t-shirts.

Coming to the topic of discussion, is it right to treat the customers based on their dress,? I think we should look from both customer perspective and sales man perspective. If we think it is wrong for a sales man to treat a customer based on his dress code, and expect him to treat all customers equally irrespective of customers dress code, we should also think how far is it right for a me to decide the deal based on sales man's behaviour. Irrespective of how sales man treat me, I should go with the purchase if I like the product.

Now, how will I handle the situation when I am ill-treated by sales man? It is a different topic all together. I will definitely show my discomfort and frustration to him and go and talk to highest level of management in the dealership and if required, to the manufacturer as well. And, if I ill-treat the sales man in first place, I will definitely give him a chance to express his anger and frustration on me. As a principle, we should learn to respect human beings and treat everyone as human beings irrespective of their position, dress, financial status, colour or creed. This is the highest level of value to me.

[V.Narayan]

Fact is all of us in all scenarios of life consciously and sub-consciously make an assessment of the person metaphorically across the table and judge him/her as a part of our over all sensing of our environment constantly. We do it in business meetings, in water cooler chats with colleagues, in shops, at parties, in interviews, at condolence meetings et al. And also when attempting to buy a car or going out to sniff things out in a showroom. And yes the sales person being no different from us judges us by our appearance because in the first 30 seconds he/she has very little else to go by. So we should not grudge him that. When two strangers meet the first thing, behavioral scientists say, they notice are each others footwear.

Where car purchase visits to a show room go last 15 years or so the tendency to under dress has become more prevalent in most especially those on the younger side. It is a mix of changing norms, more casual wear in trend, and I dare say a loss of knowledge of how to dress appropriately for different occasions and, at the risk of getting lynched, an attitude of inverted snobbery. We can dress casually and yet smartly and comfortably without degenerating to casual and slovenly. I notice a lot of the latter these days than say 25 years ago. This incongruence is most apparent at condolence meetings and dinner parties. We see people going for condolences in shorts so often! And some couples go for dinner invitation with the lady dressed to the nines and the man's dress code completely out of whack.

And if we go to look at, test drive and evaluate a Rs. 50 lakh car then there is nothing wrong if we went in hawaii chappals and half shorts but then also we should not fume if we did not get the attention expected. We confused the other side with our signaling. But we needn't blame ourselves this is a trend world wide. Just as most would dress appropriately for a job interview there is no harm in doing the same if going to evaluate cars - the second most expensive asset we usually buy.

Personally speaking I like taking the trouble of dressing appropriately for the occasion; maybe a result of my father being ex-military where there is a dress code for each occasion both in and out of uniform. And there are so many shades of dressing within the casual-smart casual range. And just as I would dress appropriately for a party or a business meeting or a visit to a friend I would do the same if prospecting for a car. It helps when meeting a stranger not to send confusing signals.

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by vidyabhushan

The forum is full of anecdotes as how some dealership didnt pay adequate attention to a prospective buyer because of his/her appearance.
While some of these instances can be attributed to safety (viz. a Harley dealer in Pune refusing test ride to prospects turning up in shorts and slippers), most instances (especially in luxury car buying) are related to 'profiling' i.e. how a sales advisor interprets prospect's appearance to judge how much attention should be awarded to the prospect.

We all know it's the jacket & tie, the shined shoes, the car you drive up in, and the limit of your credit card, that get you the salutes and attention at most places, whether it be a car dealership or a 5-star hotel. So yes, an "unwritten dress code" exists everywhere in the world, including in India.

What this thread can be useful for, is as a repertory of stories from all those BHPians who have had fun dressing poorly for a visit to a showroom or upmarket establishment of any kind. The stories can be compiled by quoting from other threads, or writing them afresh.

Here's my story, from 12 years ago...

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Well, it began on 2nd August. Based on some information I received, I walked into the Koncept showroom at Safdarjang Enclave, and asked for the price and other details of the Scorpio mHawk VLX 4WD.

Thud! The sales executive's jaw hits the floor. No 4WD available with mHawk engine Saar. You can take the 2.6 engine in 4WD. But why don't you take the 2WD VLX? That's as good as 4WD... Aapko 4WD leke kya karna hai?

This guy was really putting me off. Or maybe he thought I was one of those guys who walk into showrooms to gawk at cars, not buy them. Well, I wasn't kind of dressed to impress either... Crumpled T-shirt, baggy trousers 2 sizes too large, rubber chappals - guys who looked like me don't buy cars, said the sales exec's little red book.

I put on my sternest look, and told him that the information about mHawk 4WD comes from most trustworthy but confidential sources. Arre, kya baat hai, aap toh Anand Mahindra saab ko bhi jaante honge! goes the guy. Aisa hi kuchh samjho... Would you mind calling up Mahindra's Delhi office and confirming about this?

The sales exec called M&M's marketing office in Delhi and spoke to someone. Flat denial. No mHawk 4WD. I ask to speak to the guy on the other end of the phone. Putting on my most polished accent (thank God he didn't see my attire!), I asked him to confirm with either Mumbai or Nashik first, before telling me there IS no 4WD mHawk. I leave my mobile number with him.

My wife is livid as we walk out of the showroom. You go there and make a fool of yourself. You're acting like a kid. Like the kid who wants the moon in his hands and is upset because he can't have it. Why can't you buy a normal car like a normal person? The smirk written all over the sales guy's face as we left, and his parting comment Aapko hum ek 2WD VLX hi bechenge... had got her especially upset. I go into mute mode.

20 minutes of listening to the radio, and my mobile rings. It's the Mahindra gentleman, calling to confirm that the mHawk 4WD assembly line went onstream only 2 days ago, and how he is so sorry that he did not have the information, and how I could have all the options I wanted (the wishlist included VLX, MicroHybrid, 7-seater with middle row captain's seats and forward-facing third row, extended warranty, and BS-IV engine specs), except that the colour choice is black or white, and engine spec is only BS-III. Delivery expected in 4 - 6 weeks.

My wife has a different look in her eyes. I'll never argue with you again about cars.

[ABHI_1512]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

Here's my story, from 12 years ago...

And here’s your story resonates with what I just wrote on this thread :

Of course, being presentable matters but at the end of the day, what matters is the knowledge of the vehicle that one intends to buy. If someone is well versed with the specifications of the prospective vehicle, half the job is done there itself.

[dark.knight]

I got over the neck length hair, long goatee tied up with band and Megadeth/Eminem tee shirts during one particular break-out/rebellious year after school, thank goodness for that, no longer curious about the wild side.

Other than that I've always liked to be well dressed, smart casuals or out and out formal, I'm comfortable with either. I think any normal tee with jeans or regular pants should do for car showroom visits, of course you can wear the torn tees and ripped jeans too, paired with a rubber slipper as long as you take a cheque with you and you'd still be accorded the highest respect.

Its a business, visit if you really mean to buy and the sales people will sense it and should mostly treat you normally. I've many times visited luxury stores in less than average clothing and they still were nice to me and even nicer if I picked up a few things.

The only time you should dress all out to impress is when meeting business clients, basically the burden of great dressing falls on those that have money to receive, not to give, that's why the car salesmen are mostly well dressed.

[Chetan_Rao]

I don't take issue with organizations demanding their clientele meet certain 'standards': dress, behavior, what have you. They're well within their rights to run their business as they please, as long as it's within the law.

I take issue with how quickly 'standards' seem to get discarded once money is put on the table, metaphorically or literally. Do 'values' mean anything if they come with a price tag?

Whether I agree or disagree, I'd have respect for organizations that would refuse to lower standards to get business. In reality, such organizations are rarer than unicorns.

[DicKy]

Can't say anything about shorts/beach shirt/chappal attire, but other than that, it is your attitude that matters most. The way you carry yourself, earnestness (real or fake), the way you speak, everything matters.

Got to TD a GLA when I was in college (mid 2010s). Just walked in (T-shirt/jeans/shoes) with a bag over our shoulders. But that was Bengaluru, and after our TD saw a guy taking delivery of a C class wearing shorts/beach shirt/chappals. Can't imagine the same in a Merc showroom in Kerala at that time.

Best bet. Book a TD via the company website. You will get a TD car at your doorstep within a week. No need to impress with attire/wheels or go through the SA's screening. Have done it only for sub 15 lakhs cars, not sure about 15+ lakh ones

[SmartCat]

More appropriate question is: Would a car salesman's dressing sense & the way he presents himself influence your buying decision?

It is the car salesman's job to impress customers. Not the customer's job to impress car salesmen!

[jayguar]

I had a quite a different experience in Singapore. A few of my friends and I had visited a company near a Lamborghini showroom. We were in our business suits. While we were waiting for our vehicle to pick us up, we thought of visiting the Lamborghini showroom. We were warmly welcomed and though we immediately told him we were there not to buy but just to check out the cars, he unlocked the doors of all the cars in the showroom for us. He did tell us people who buy them there usually don't ask questions. Irrespective of their attire, mostly casuals, they just come in, and make the payment. The locals there were surprised to hear this as they said they wouldn't even be allowed inside the showroom. It could probably be the attire.

Back in India, more than the attire, its the knowledge. Truth to be told, among senior sales advisors or managers, the words, 'Team BHP' makes whole lot of difference. Personally, I prefer to be presentable when visiting showrooms.