Skills Demonstrations - great additions to WorldSkills London 2011

When wandering through the competition floor or navigating through the photos on the WorldSkills International website, you may have noticed two Skills that haven’t always been there in the past, these are Creative Modelling and Visual Merchandising. These are being showcased at WorldSkills London 2011 as Demonstration Skills. A Demonstration Skill is designed like a Skills Competition, but does not have official status as a Skill.

During each WorldSkills Competition, the Host Member decides on additional Skills to highlight.  In most cases, the Demonstration Skills represent fields that are in demand in that particular Host Member’s region. Given the reputation the United Kingdom has in being one of the major shopping hubs of the world, it’s not surprising why Visual Merchandising would be selected here. Often consumers decisions on whether or not to enter a store are based on the creativity of the window display, making Visual Merchandising a critical piece in many business’s marketing strategies.

Erika Scraff, Expert from The Netherlands says “This is an excellent Skills Demonstration because it’s an employable field and it’s also very visual, making it a great compliment to the event”.

When a new industrial product is developed, a product is designed based on a concept and a prototype model is created, and the shape of the new product is next determined after thorough review and modification.

Creative modelling, which provides infinite ideas and skills needed to materialise ideas, is an essential sector of industry for developing attractive products.

Visual Merchandising has four Competitors and Creative Modelling has six at WorldSkills London 2011. Stay tuned to future WorldSkills Competitions as these Skills Demonstrations continue to seek official Skill status.