How did MINI evolve from a civilian brand to a high-end brand? How long can MINI's high-end image last? In this article, we will talk about this topic in detail.
In 1956, the outbreak of the Second Middle East War led to a severe oil shortage in Britain, and sales of large-displacement models fell sharply. At that time, british motor companies (bmc) clearly realized that the market would need more fuel-efficient and practical economic cars.
In the autumn of 1959, the mini was finally introduced, and its design was very clear: the smallest car could easily carry 4 adults and some luggage items. The new car is positioned for ordinary families and sells for less than £500. So at the beginning of the birth of MINI, it is actually very similar to our Wuling Hongguang MINI, which is a particularly cheap car brand. And the users who originally bought MINI were not fashionable young people, but the scooter shopping cart of housewives.
MINI went from a cheap model to a high-end brand. Went through three great events that changed the fate of MINI.
The first thing: it's the celebrity effect. Because it is cheap and exquisitely shaped, the mini has gained the favor and love of many people and has become a private car with no grade. Among them is Mr. Bean, whom we know. And the Queen of England also owns a MINI. Therefore, celebrities have a strong ability to carry goods, and MINI has also participated in many well-known film and television works. With the spread of film and television works, MINI spread all over the world.
The second thing: In 1963, with the introduction of the Mini Cooper S, the Mini began to move in the direction of performance cars. Later, the MINI models continued to compete, and it can be said that the entire 60s was a bumper harvest for the Mini on the track, with a total of more than 25 rally championships and other non-rally championships. Even if we turn over the racing history of the era, we can still see the highlights of The Mini car against the Mustang, Corvette, MG and Triumph of that year. So that put the MINI car on fire again.
The third thing: BMW acquired MINI, and in 2001, BMW's redesigned MINI came out, and since then, MINI has completely transformed into a high-end car brand.
How many mini brands sell globally in a year? That is about 200,000 to 300,000 vehicles. This is a very small sales volume, if it were not for the support of BMW cars behind it, it is estimated that the MINI brand would have been unable to do so. Since MINI is a particularly niche brand, it is not destined to have particularly large sales.
After the advent of the new energy era, it is a big challenge for the MINI brand. Because of the high value and high control of the MINI brand, after the advent of the new energy era, many other brands can easily replace it. Therefore, the moat of MINI is slowly being eaten away.
Chinese users have a lower sense of identification with the British culture represented behind the MINI brand. It's not even as influential as Hollywood movies on younger users. In addition, there are many brand competitions after MINI domestic production, so if the MINI brand does not reduce the price domestically, it will be difficult to compete with its own brand.