As a more targeted way to introduce consumers to its new Paceman model, Mini teamed up with UrbanDaddy to provide concierge and chauffeur services in four major cities during the month of August. The event tour, dubbed Mini Night Out, kicked off in Chicago during Lollapalooza and traveled to San Francisco before hitting Miami August 16 and 17.
Initial production for the partnership between the car company and men's lifestyle brand began roughly eight months ago. “Mini approached us about the launch of the Mini Paceman, and after hearing about the car, this program was a no-brainer,” said UrbanDaddy C.E.O. Lance Broumand.
At the most recent run in Miami, the hybrid concierge and chauffeur concept offered UrbanDaddy's local V.I.P.s a nighttime journey, trips to three nightlife hot spots in the new coupe over the course of eight hours. After scheduling a complimentary ride through UrbanDaddy and checking in at a designated hub, passengers hopped in a Mini Paceman, along with a driver and an escort. Inside the car, a tailored soundtrack of road tunes played on an integrated Pandora music system and passengers could snap and share photos with the hashtag #MiniNightOut to social media using an iPad. Video feeds also captured evening cameos.
“We’re doing this program so that people can experience this beautifully designed new vehicle in it’s native environment: the city at night,” Broumand said.
The selected Mini Night Out destinations were loaded with food and beverage amenities, including a featured three-course menu at Wynwood Kitchen & Bar; creative tapas, sushi, champagne, and cocktails at Haven Gastro-Lounge; and libations and bottle service at Bar Centro and Hyde Beach at the SLS Hotel South Beach.
“This program was probably one of the most complex we’ve seen,” Broumand said. A list of production-related obstacles included coordinating media, social media, digital technology, vehicle management and logistics, partnerships with top-tier venues, a large number of staff on the ground, costuming, staff choreography, in-car photography and videography, reservation systems, car dispatching, and traffic. “The fact that we’re moving from city to city only multiplies the complexity,” Broumand said. “Perhaps the most challenging aspect of this was thinking about the ‘venue’ as the Mini Paceman, the smallest, but most fun event venue we’ve ever dealt with.”
The national event campaign is slated to end in New York August 21 and 22.
