'When one talks with facts, people cannot push you into a corner'

Outgoing President of FADA, Vinkesh Gulati's tenure saw some unusual challenges in the industry. Undeterred he shares the sojourn with Mayank Dhingra and the journey ahead for his successor.

- Mayank Dhingra

VINKESH GULATI TOOK aover ass President of the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations of India (FADA) in September 2020 at the height of the pandemic. In a freewheeling interview with Autocar Professional the data-driven automobile dealer tells about the challenges, the gains and a few misses in his twoyear term. He handed over the baton to Manish Raj Singhania on August 24. Excerpts from the interview:

What were the biggest challenges when you took over as the 35th FADA president in a time of Covid?

When I entered, we were on the verge of the BS 4 to BS 6 transition. It was a time of extreme confusion as we had to go to the Supreme Court and various local transport commissioners in several states to get clarity about the eligibility of vehicle registrations that could not happen due to Covid. So, things were in a mess when I started, and I had to clean it up.

Also, what we thought to be an extended 45-day holiday during the first lockdown in April 2020, ended up being something much bigger, and of an unimaginable proportion.

At the time, the biggest job as the president of an association was to give direction to member dealers about how to handle the catastrophe with respect to not just business, but also employee health.

While OEMs were focused on managing customers and giving dealers SOPS for ensuring customer safety, FADA had to jump in to manage the part that was most crucial - ensuring the well-being and health of our employees and how dealers should support them through Covid insurance policies or by devising some CSR activities to help economically weak employees.