Surabhi Mohadikar (NID - Design For Retail Experience)

Background

Teacup blog is a great platform for design aspirants to find guidance and motivation. I thought of sharing my story because Teacup blog has helped me to know how to study and what to study. It has given me direction while I was reading more and more experiences. I completed the course of  Architecture from Sir JJ College of Architecture, Mumbai.

NID 2018: First attempt:

I decided to attempt NID for retail experience in August 2017 while I was working. I came across Addylabs channel on Youtube. And started following tips given by Akshay Khandalkar Sir. Soon I joined the Facebook page- GNID Future designers,  where people upload their works and give and take feedback. I practiced sketching daily. I solved previous year question papers. For GK I read Manorama year book. I started reading the newspaper every day. I collected all the packaging’s (did not throw any plastic bottles, papers or boxes) and made DIYs from them. I followed websites like Pinterest, Behance, Stuffyoulook.blogspot.com. but I missed the aptitude part. I did not solve R.S. Agarwal – Verbal & Nonverbal Reasoning. 

The paper pattern (Jan 2018) was 70% aptitude and GK.  30% Creative part: sketching and designing.  NID changes the paper pattern every year more or less. The results were out and I did not clear. I decided to reappear.

Mistakes made:

1.    Less focus on aptitude – R.S. Agarwal.

2.    Read the Exam Brochure carefully there are hints about the paper pattern and all the details about the exam are mentioned in detail. You can call the admission cell about your queries.

NID and CEED 2019: Second attempt:

I restarted by reading books like Design for everyday things, The Big book of brain games, R.S. Agarwal, searched for to the point GK material and articles. I practiced sketching regularly. Took a 4 months break from work. I solved the past year question papers for CEED and NID this time by setting up a time limit after which I cross-checked the answer keys if they were available. I would solve the wrong answers in 2-3 different ways or 2-3 examples for similar type. Discussed my design questions with friends and fb groups. In addition to the past year routine, I followed these things. Also, I went for jogging daily that kept me energetic, motivated and fresh. As my focus was the retail experience I repeatedly visited malls and sketched various displays, kept a record of various packaging ideas, logos and brands.

Time after CEED and NID prelims:

I took rest for a week and tried connecting to different people for seeking direction about how to proceed further. I started thinking about my portfolio. I came to know about Teacup blog at this time, here I got an idea of how the mains will be. I started sketching a series on Indian culture after discussion with my senior teacher ( we call her Sumitra Aunty)

The results were out in February and I was shortlisted for next round in NID design for retail experience (open rank 17)

I qualified CEED - open rank 101. I applied for Industrial design and communication design in IDC IIT Bombay. Filling the form for IDC took time as they have design questions to answer.

I was clueless about what was expected in Mains for NID retail. Through LinkedIn, I approached the passed out professionals from this stream and they helped me by answering my questions. They explained how story building and brand identity is important in retail. They also suggested me to read about Indian and worldwide successful brand stories and also to observe the retail merchandising and stores in detail. Study of various fonts and logos.

Material use: corrugated sheet, paper, straw, match sticks, plastic scrubbers, sponge, wire, rubber bands, ice cream sticks, mount board, sun board, led lights, used plastic bottles, clay, cloth, thread, wool, etc. I tried to make 3d models using these materials eg. Various packaging or display units or small products.

NID MAINS:

Studio test: 3 hours

Question paper

1.    Sketch a window display for a sports brand promoting yoga accessories.

2.    Complete the given sketch showing a family, father mother and two kids at a modern grocery store.

3.    A boy wants to buy 1-liter oil from a big departmental store. Draw the user experience interface and flow chart of how he will buy it, 20 years from now. Write a paragraph explaining the same.

4.    Draw exterior facade for the same big departmental store how it will look after 20 years

Studio test: Banana leaf, thread, 4 match sticks, A3 size corrugated cardboard sheet, 2 candles, glue could be used. We had to design a corporate gift packaging for the given candles.

Interview: They asked me why I wanted to join this course? What exactly I aim to learn in Design for retail experience? They asked questions about the portfolio. How I evolved the sketches? They asked me to sketch the interview scenario and asked me to submit till the evening. The interview lasted for around 20 mins. They also appreciated my few of my works. 

IDC MAINS – INDUSTRIAL DESIGN

Studio test: 1 Single wire was given and we had to mold the wire into Ice holder/ice tong. A tool was given to bend the wire. We were supposed to explain the design through sketches and a few pointers. The metal wire had to be used carefully as the second wire would not be provided in case of damage to the given wire.

Interview: They asked me to explain my studio test product. They commented on my portfolio, asked about materials and their manufacturing processes. Why do I want to do this course? Questions on recycling waste materials and making products with them ( it was related to my final year thesis). It was a rapid fire round.

IDC MAINS – COMMUNICATION DESIGN

Studio test: poster for an NGO who wants to work on making our Earth green through individual awareness and action.

Interview: they asked questions on the portfolio and role of colors in different products, how can we derive natural colors eg. haldi, beetroot, coffee, etc.

RESULTS:

Got shortlisted for:

1.    Industrial design in IDC

2.    Design for retail experience in NID.

As I was more interested in Retail I went for retail experience. The college will start from 1st, July 2019.

I want to thank everyone who supported me through this amazing journey. I would just say enjoy every bit of it as you will evolve through this process. Do what you love and chase your dreams.

All the best.