Detroit Auto Show: Mini Boss Jim McDowell on the Mini Cooper's Success

In a disastrous automobile market, U.S. sales of the fuel-efficient Mini brand gained 29 percent in 2008 to a U.S. record 54,077 units. The U.S. overtook the U.K. as the brand's biggest-selling single market in the world.That's a development few people would have foreseen when parent company BMW first revived the Mini brand in the U.S. market in 2002, with a below-the-radar marketing campaign. In lieu of expensive TV ads, the Mini launch relied heavily on guerilla marketing, publicity stunts like displaying a Chevrolet Suburban with a Mini mounted on the roof, to generate word-of-mouth.

Mini's initial goal was around 20,000 cars a year. That quickly rose to around 30,000 annually, when it became apparent BMW had a hit on its hands. Since 2004, rising U.S. gas prices, a new and larger generation of the Mini Cooper model, plus the introduction of the even bigger Mini Cooper Clubman model have spelled even bigger success in the United States.

Mini's success is in sharp contrast to the cratering U.S. auto market in general. Yesterday, I interviewed Jim McDowell, the BMW of North America vice president in charge of Mini, at the Detroit auto show. The following are edited excerpts:

BNET: I'm fresh from a session hosted by Deloitte, where a bunch of MBA students said Gen Y values expressive styling, good gas mileage, and the ability to customize, all things that Mini does well. They had some good things to say about Mini; less so about Scion. What are your buyer demographics? I know in the case of Scion, it's a "barbell" distribution, where they have a lot of young buyers, and a lot of Baby Boomers, but not much in-between. Your median age is pretty low, right? Jim McDowell: We have a very wide spectrum. It is not a barbell distribution. We have a lot of drivers in their early 20s and even in their teens. A lot of them are not purchasers. Somebody in their family buys it for them.

BNET: But that's not a majority, right? Is it even a goal of yours, to get more of those people? JM: We have quite a few people in their early 30s, for whom Mini is the fun car in the driveway. Depending on its utilization, they may trade off who drives which car on which day.

We also have quite a few in their 40s. They tend to be buyers making a reward purchase to reward themselves. A lot of them are females who were always saddled with a vehicle they really didn't want, for family reasons. Mini could be the first car she really wants.

The male counterpart in this age group tends to be adding an additional car to their fleet. They won't be using it to pick up clients at the airport, maybe, but it's a fun car for them. Buyers in their late 50s tend to be done with a lot of life's responsibilities. They may be simplifying their lives, choosing a simpler lifestyle, realizing that they really don't have to haul all that around with them any more.

BNET: I hate to ask, if it's not a number that's important to you, but what's your median age? JM: The median, the last time I looked, was 44 years old, but keep in mind that's purchasers only, that's not accounting for people who buy a car for someone of driving age in their household.

BNET: What about customization? People in their early 20s are dedicating a lot of their income to their Mini. We figure that's because a lot of them are still living at home, so they don't have that expense. But their Mini is their own personal space, maybe their only personal space.

BNET: I don't get the sense that you start every day with a burning desire to sign up more 20-somethings. As you know, the knock on Scion is that it's supposed to be this youthful brand, but they attract a lot of Boomers. Are you frustrated that you don't get more young people? JM: That is not our mission.

BNET: What about using the Mini brand to get people to step up to the BMW brand? That's got to be some of the thinking behind Scion, to get people to the mother ship, Toyota. Is that part of your mission? JM: I will tell you, we do have some things we're doing to try and encourage that. I have heard that with Scion it could be sort of the other way around. A percentage of the people who buy Scion didn't start out with the intention of buying Scion. That tells me people are going to the Toyota dealership, and they end up looking at this more affordable (Scion) car.