MINI Canada has been awarded a “Gold” Media Innovation Award from Marketing Magazine last week. The awards are “Canada's premiere awards show recognizing excellence in the planning and buying of media in the marketing/advertising sector.” Here's all the info directly from the source of the award Marketing Magazine:

Caged Mini
BMW Group Canada needed a campaign for the Mini, a car with a personality in direct inverse proportion to its size.

Specifically, BMW Group Canada wanted to target attendees while they were en route to auto shows in Toronto and Vancouver, whether they were in their cars, taking transit or gathered at meeting places around the shows. However, not any medium would do. It had to be in keeping with the Mini's brand character of an individualistic, high performance, premium vehicle that's fun to drive. It also had to be a medium that set the Mini apart from its competitors in a highly cluttered automotive market.

With only four weeks to plan and execute the limited-budget campaign, multiple brainstorming sessions produced a unique use of out-of-home.

To reach those people going to the Toronto Auto Show by public transit, BMW Group Canada used a GO Station/Union Station domination campaign that employed multiple format media. (Those stations are closest to the Metro Convention Centre where the Toronto show was held). To reach anyone going to the show by car or meeting friends near the venue, BMW Group Canada put a Mini in a cage.

The media supplier built the cage in two weeks, and with the Mini in it car and cage were placed in a prime location across from the Convention Centre. And for anyone tempted to linger in front of the cage, there was a sign that said, “Please do not feed, tease or annoy the Mini.” For the Vancouver Auto Show, the caged Mini was placed directly across from BC Place.

Between auto shows, the Mini in a cage certainly got around: dealerships, the Montreal Grand Prix and such high traffic locations as the Yonge and Eglinton intersection in midtown Toronto.

The Mini must have liked travelling. It's on tour in Toronto again for the last half of 2003.

As many of you might have noticed the caged MINI has now moved onto other countries and events such as the version that was seen at the Frankfurt Autoshow (pictured above).