Sytner Group - Driven by Design 2021

Dealerships across Sytner Group and CarShop recently rolled out the red carpet to welcome in the winners of the Driven by Design competition. Launched in January, the initiative looked to assist parents, guardians and teachers with the pressure of home-schooling and challenged participants to design their own cars.

Ran in partnership with the Institute of the Motor Industry and aimed at secondary school students, the Driven by Design competition challenged entrants to create an imaginative concept car and then create a marketing campaign to launch it. The prize for the best designs was an iPad and a feature on the Sytner Careers website.

The core task of Driven by Design was for students to ensure that their concept car addressed a challenge that currently faces the world; this could be anything from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic to mental health or environmental concerns. We were blown away by the creativity of the designs that we received.

In total, over 250 talented pupils from across the UK entered the competition, with just seven talented individuals eventually being selected as the winners. Talking about the entries received, Paul Hudspith, Head of Recruitment and Central HR at Sytner Group said: “Myself and the team have been so impressed by the entries we received through our Driven by Design competition – the talent, creativity and thought that went into each was exceptional.

“We knew how important it was to create a competition like this when we saw just how badly young people have been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic – with education disrupted and career prospects badly hit. For that reason, we set Driven by Design up to challenge students, help them to realise their creative abilities, and give them something to focus on as the world can feel like a very overwhelming place right now.

“Their work inspired me – and we hope that it, in turn, inspired them to think about where a career in automotive retail could take them. A huge well done to the winners and a massive thank you to everyone who entered.”

All entrants were judged on a number of different categories, with the judges focusing on the quality of the concept car, the objectives and issues raised, the marketing campaign and the overall creativity of the project as a whole.

Once selected, each of the winners were invited to a local dealership to receive their iPad and gift bag from the Head of Business. Whilst at the dealership, the winners were asked to speak about their project and what inspired them to combat each specific issue. It was also great to receive feedback from the parents and teachers of the winners, with one teacher commenting:

“As a school we are delighted to be a part of this competition … to have one of our own win the competition is an honour.

We are so very proud and very happy for this success, as a lot of very hard work went into this project. Well done!”

At Sytner Group, we have a commitment to diversity and inclusivity and put developing talent and building careers at the core of what we do. It’s for that reason that we know the importance of initiatives like this competition and helping the children in our local communities to build on their skills.

We’re incredibly proud of the competition and impressed by the quality of all of the entries that we received. We’d like to thank everyone that entered the competition and would like to extend our congratulations to the winners once again!