Mini riffs on rivals’ taglines in ads outside the New York Auto Show

Mini USA won’t be formally attending the New York International Auto Show, which begins today. Instead, the BMW-owned brand is crashing the industry event by co-opting competitor taglines in an outdoor campaign. Working with Goodby Silverstein & Partners, Mini secured space on billboards surrounding the Jacob Javits Convention Center where it is running ads with copy such as “ ‘Ello, Jeep people. There’s only ever been one street-legal go-kart.” That line references the Jeep tagline, “There’s Only One,” in an attempt to win attention from the thousands of auto enthusiasts headed to the show. Other ads similarly recast taglines from Mercedes, Ford and Porsche. Mini is also running two full-page ads in The New York Times that reinforce its “street-legal go-kart” manifesto. The ads direct viewers to a website where they can sign up to partake in Mini test drives being conducted across the country. The campaign does not stop in New York. Mini is also running the messaging on billboards near the Atlanta headquarters of Mercedes and Porsche—both in Atlanta—as well as Jeep in Detroit. “Mini is a brand that has always carved its own path. We’ve been the feisty underdog, taking on bigger brands with Brit-grit, humor and, most of all, fun,” said Kate Alini, department head, marketing, product and strategy for Mini USA. “With this campaign we are taking a page out of the old Mini playbook and disrupting in ways that only Mini can.” “The brand doesn’t show up in ways a traditional car brand would—like at an Auto Show,” said Mason Douglass, senior copywriter at GS&P. “Instead, we developed a creative approach that points out in a ‘Mini way’ that driving is more fun than looking at a bunch of static display cars.”

Mini riffs on rivals’ taglines in ads outside the New York Auto Show

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