RICHMOND HILL, ON: After two years of lockdowns and social distancing, MINI is delighted to bring its community together once again to celebrate all things MINI – including the brand’s twentieth anniversary in Canada. MINI United – a brand celebration now in its sixth installment – takes places in British Columbia on August 27 and 28.
MINI United is the evolution of MINI Invasion, an event that began in Toronto in 2010. Four years later, MINI fans “Stormed the Fort” in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario. They then “Headed for the Hill” in Ottawa, Ontario in 2015 and “Rallyed en Masse” to Montreal, Quebec in 2017. In 2019, they “Trekked to PEC” in Prince Edward County, Ontario. This year’s “MINI United” takes place in beautiful Kelowna, B.C., marking the first time the festivities will occur on Canada’s west coast.
“MINI has an uncanny way of bringing people together,” said Mat Sayer, director, MINI Canada. “There’s a real sense of family with this brand, a sense of belonging. A MINI customer doesn’t own a MINI; their MINI is a part of the family. Just like no two people are the same, no two MINIs are the same. We’re all different, all our cars are different, but we’re pretty good together. And that’s something to celebrate. After three years without a MINI community gathering, I’m looking very forward to connecting with MINI fans in Kelowna in late August.”
MINI United will take place at Tantalus Vineyards, where sustainability is taken into consideration in every aspect of operation. From good land stewardship to the health of the vineyard’s business – and, by extension, the health of the local community – Tantalus has a long-held commitment to making wines of the highest quality in the most responsible way they know.
This commitment suits MINI very well. With an eye on the future, MINI offers fun-to-drive models with a small footprint. The brand currently offers two plug-in models – the all-electric MINI Cooper SE 3-door and the hybrid electric MINI Cooper SE Countryman. By the early 2030s, MINI will be an all-electric brand. For MINI, sustainability is about far more than the product. It’s about how the product is built, where its materials come from and how they are sourced, the supplier network, end-of-life recyclability and more.
MINI is now charting the course for the future on a platform that has the brand taking up today’s challenges in the areas of mobility, energy economy and climate protection and facing up to them with independent solutions for the driving fun of tomorrow. The strategy developed for this action is based on the campaign slogan BIG LOVE. This is what MINI stands for, and why hosting MINI United at a sustainably-focussed Canadian vineyard works. It’s about Big Love; it’s about creative new ways of thinking and about creating a brighter future for us and our planet.
In honour of the brand’s twentieth anniversary in Canada, MINI will put both its past and its future on display in Kelowna. Relaunching as a premium brand through BMW in 2001, MINI arrived in Canada in 2002. The first car to come to this market was an Indi Blue MINI 3 door with Panther Black Leatherette. Its Chromeline Exterior, heated front seats and white roof and mirror caps still bring the inventive spirit and exceptional personalization that only MINI can offer to life. Epically fun to drive and showcasing MINI’s innate ability to make creative use of space, “the 2002,” as it is affectionately known, commemorates the arrival of this beloved marque on Canadian soil. On the modern side of the brand’s history, the MINI Cooper SE 3 door will also be displayed. With its low centre of gravity, powerful electric powertrain, and dynamic handling, the MINI Cooper SE is a true performance car that retains all the fun-to-drive attributes MINI owners have come to know and love wrapped up in a purely-electric package.
More details – including the announcement of a very special guest – will come shortly. Meanwhile, MINI United promises to bring people together in a way that no other event can. Because nobody is like a MINI fan. And no vehicle is like a MINI. If you have a MINI in your family and want to join the reunion, register at MINI.ca/en/discover/mini-united today.
