Social media, the way of the future for membership?
Practical Classics
'We can learn a great deal from what’s happening in India right now, when it comes to attracting young people into the historic vehicle movement,' according to FIVA President Patrick Rollet.
In March, FIVA (the Fédération Internationale des Véhicules Anciens) held its General Council meeting in Bangalore. Explaining why Bangalore was the perfect venue, Rollet commented: 'India is a country where the ‘love affair with the automobile’ is a more recent phenomenon than in the West, and it’s truly heartening to see the groundswell of enthusiasm for historic vehicles among younger Indians – at a time when European enthusiasts are worried that classics will increasingly be seen as something for the older generation.'
So what is the Indian historic vehicle community doing to encourage this groundswell of interest among the young? A key factor is the growing number of informal groups on social media, who meet at the weekend for casual drives in various cities. A prime example is Classic Drivers of Calcutta (CDC), as young entrepreneur and enthusiast Souvik Ghose Chaudhuri explains: 'CDC was founded in 2017 with only three members but we now have 98 owners in the group, with 15 per cent being ‘first-timers’ and almost half under the age of 35. But importantly, we also have 500-plus members on Facebook and Instagram who may or may not currently own a historic vehicle.
'To ‘catch them young’, it’s important to create communities around historic vehicles – non-competitive, fun social events to attract newcomers, such as movie screenings and garage days, plus extensive use of social media and workshops. It’s working. We’re seeing younger people, most of them ‘first-timers’, acquiring classics, while our members seem to be overcoming the absence of a DIY culture and have taken to working on their vehicles themselves! The future is bright.'
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