Design students explore the nitty-gritty of various fabric

At Apeejay Institute of Design (AID) market visits form an integral part of the curriculum. The Institute  believes that design is research based and no design education can be fulfilled without hands-on material exploration. Hence, students are encouraged to take up practical market surveys and budding designers from all the departments visit their respective markets to learn how to procure raw materials and finishes of their respective fields.

Aligned with this vision, Contemporary Market Research Visits is also a key aspect of learning at AID. Thus AID students of all the specialisations recently went for market research. They visited relevant markets to gather information regarding various material, cost, sizes and packaging available.

Fashion design students, as a part of market research, visited HP Singh Associates in Nehru Place to witness one of the renowned stores with the widest range of fabrics in the market. The students received the privilege of interacting with Mr Bashi MP Singh, Director of HP Singh Associates, who exposed them to a wide range of different fabrics. With this interaction, along with the technical knowledge of weaves and construction, the students could feel and touch different fabrics and understand the texture of a variety of fabrics. They witnessed collections of cotton, embroidered fabrics, blends, chanderi, tussar, knits, chantley , laces and patches. 

Students vouch that the visit has been very effective as they gathered required information about various types of fabric and gained awareness about material while they keenly observed and interacted with the store manager to clarify their queries. “Market research helped me to learn the practicalities of being a designer. In addition to this, interacting with the people at the  back end was very informative and fruitful,” explained Ridhima Jain of GDP – 3^rd Semester Fashion Design.

Another GDP – 3^rd Semester Fashion Design student Rishika Jain said, “This market visit helped us to gain in-depth knowledge about different kinds of raw materials. Visit was very innovative and I enjoyed knowing the local terms about fabrics and raw materials.”