24/04/2015
Vestel and Sabancı University Executive Development Unit partnered to establish the Vestel Retail Academy to guide Vestel towards its vision of "being number 1 in the retail business."
The Vestel Retail Academy will foster a common retail culture among Vestel employees and all field teams (assistants, merchandisers, supervisors, promoters and others) in the chain and dealership channels. Nearly 1000 Vestel employees and field sales personnel will receive training at the Vestel Retail Academy over the course of one and a half years. The curriculum consists of 40 different courses under categories including management skills and leadership, business and people management, retail trends and change management, proactive selling, competitive store operations, future scenarios, and strategic management. Vestel Group of Companies CEO Turan Erdoğan said that the Vestel Retail Academy was a great step towards becoming "number 1 in the retail industry" and continued: "The guiding principle of Vestel is to be customer-focused in all operations from manufacturing to marketing, sales and customer service. Just as we design our products according to customer needs, we base our retail approach on it as well. Sociological and economic changes have an impact on customer wants and needs. If you are in the retail business, you must continuously reinvent yourself by taking these dynamics into consideration. We made an investment that serves our purpose of being number 1 in the retail business and started the Vestel Retail Academy. We would like to thank our business partner Sabancı University Executive Development Unit for their valuable support through their expertise and experienced people."
Academy is for everyone from General Manager to store employees
Explaining their objective of fostering a common retail culture across Vestel, Erdoğan said: "Vestel operates a multitude of sales channels. In addition to our dealerships, we have internet sales and chain store channels. The retail academy designed by Sabancı University Executive Development Unit is tailored to the unique needs of Vestel and includes courses that span all of our channels and have benefits for each. In order for us to become number 1 in retail, everyone from General Manager to chain store employee will take these trainings." Sabancı University Executive Development Unit Director Cüneyt Evirgen said that the retail academy designed for Vestel would, in addition to fostering a common culture, benefit efficiencies and customer satisfaction, adding: "As Sabancı University we are excited to join forces with Vestel, Turkey's leading electronics brand. The new academy program will help Vestel become the pride of our nation in retail as well as technology. Train-the-Trainer courses in the academy will ensure that Vestel will have its own trainers by the end of the program."
Products to speak silently
The "silent selling" course in the Vestel Retail Academy offers learnings in correct store design and product layout, and active sales with informational materials wherein the product speaks for itself. Theoretical training will be complemented with roleplays, videos and interactive work. Vestel will create an e-learning portal to support the Retail Academy. All Vestel employees and field sales teams that complete the Retail Academy successfully will receive certificates.