Official Release: MINI USA reported sales of 4,105 automobiles, down 21.2 percent from the 5,211 cars sold in June 2008. Year-to-date, MINI USA also reported sales of 20,885 automobiles, a decrease of 20.9 percent, compared to the 26,400 cars reported after the first six months of 2008.
“This month, we saw consumers coming back into dealerships in some metro areas like Boston, New York and Los Angeles and that’s encouraging,†said Jim McDowell, Vice President of MINI USA. “The positive results in those three areas have helped to decouple MINI somewhat from the industry decline and we continue to outperform the market by a wide margin.â€
<p>Well, last month I moved on to a different small car after six years and two MINIs…maybe it was all my fault!!!! :(</p>
<p>“The positive results in those three areas have helped to decouple MINI somewhat from the industry decline and we continue to outperform the market by a wide margin.â€
Huh! Spin it some more, Ford sales are only down 10.7% Since when was a 20% drop better than an 11% drop?? Must be that New math.</p>
<p>“the industry” is not only Ford, any more than it is not only MINI. If Ford year-to-date sales are down less than 11%, that’s very much better than “the industry” overall, which I’ve seen predicting down 30%-35% for the year.</p>
<p>It will be interesting to see if the drumbeat of MINI USA spin can counteract public perceptions based on recent initial quality rankings (not to mention the premium price tag). Actually, in all likelihood this is an optimum time to buy an R55/56/57 if you have the $$ — MINI seems to be finally overcoming some of the more onerous quality issues (i.e., getting the “bugs” out…)</p>
<p>McDowell does not even say that consumers <em>bought</em> MINIs in Boston, New York, and Los Angeles.</p>
<p>Given the price of gasoline last summer, June 09 sales were about on par with June 07 which is pretty darn good before everyone got caught in the moment and sent fuel sipping cars through the roof.</p>
<p>Not bad at all for what was a record breaking June 2008 for MINI given the price of gas.</p>
<blockquote>McDowell does not even say that consumers bought MINIs in Boston, New York, and Los Angeles.</blockquote>
<p>you are correct. MINI didn’t sell anything in those cities. :rolleyes:</p>
<blockquote>Huh! Spin it some more, Ford sales are only down 10.7% Since when was a 20% drop better than an 11% drop?? Must be that New math.</blockquote>
<p>Ford down 11%, GM down 33%, Toyota down 27%, Honda down 30%, Chrysler down 48%, Nissan down 23%, Subaru <strong>UP</strong> 3.4%, BMW down 20%.</p>
<p>opening more dealerships is the right move for Mini to the the problem for “NOW”. however, when those dealerships are tapped out of sales, its gonna be the same crap as it is today. everyone who wants a mini in a city that has a mini dealership, already has one… i’ll bet when those 20 come out, their sales arent going to be much better in the older dealerships prior to the 20 being built.</p>
<p>they need to rethink their method of sale. yes, its cool, yes i know theyre trying to be premium, but the problem is that the public aint buying that idea. move on, put more common sense in your product, realize that people will always want a value, and adapt.</p>
<p>I agree…..”the deal” in 2003 or 2005 or even 2007 is not the deal now, imo, and I suspect other makers are going to be offering other well-equipped small cars that will take a permanent bite out of MINI sales. That said, I do think MINI will continued to reign in the performance realm, as most of what we are due to see from other makers is more tailored for the masses…not quite as edgy as a MINI. Maybe that’s a good thing in the end….MINI can focus on staying a premium brand. Yes, they may not sell volumes, but then again, MINI always seemed to sense it was more about exclusivity in a niche for them…maybe it’s time to reconsider that model.</p>
<p>btw, as a twice MINI owner (and I know folks who have had four or five MINIs) I, too, suspected that there was a finite number of folks in any given area who will go for a MINI. At the same time, I was in the dealership recently where an owner was having a coronary over the cost of a power steering pump on her post-warranty car. Cute as the car is, she does not need a MINI.</p>
<p>I really feel that brining the ONE here, in both Coupe and Clubman form, would help sales. Performance is cool, but there are many who are into aesthetics. Im personally more into slamming a car on expensive deep dish rims, and pulling high horsepower is a meh for me, since I do mostly city driving. Bring a ONE Clubman and im buying it. A Coupe Diesel would be another option id take over the U.S. Options as well.</p>
<p>From an economic angle – given the above car market figures could it possibly be that the US market is maxed out with debt, the economy in deep recession / depression, deflation could be winning over inflation and there isn’t enough liquidity to enable people to buy vehicles in general? What if there is another potential economic crash just around the corner? Some initial thoughts…</p>
<p>Given the record sales last year, especially during the summer months, when gasoline was at record levels, June 2009 sales are actually quite good.</p>
<blockquote>Performance is cool, but there are many who are into aesthetics. Im personally more into slamming a car on expensive deep dish rims</blockquote>
<p>Since we are talking about sales….Every person like this who buys a MINI most certainly drives at least two people away from the brand. Alot of people will not buy a civic because of the ricer racers. Taking MINI down market is not a solution. As has been stated miniusa is doing quite well compared to most everyone else.</p>
<p>Take note that MINI sales were down 505 vehicles from this May so all isn’t rosy. I think MINI should have scheduled the interior (especially!!!) and exterior refresh for 2010 models instead of 2011.</p>
<p>Only Hyundai Accent sales were up!!</p>
<p>Accent is a nice car…. Never thought I’d say that. But so is the Sonata.</p>
<p>Anyway, Mini has a value proposion that’s challenging to many…</p>
<p>Matt</p>
<p>Opening 20 more dealers in the US will help sales in both the short term and long term. I will define short term as 12 months, and long term as six to ten years. Think about how much fuel has risen in price in the last three months alone. Also look on the forums where many people are looking for DIY advice because the nearest Mini dealer is two hours (or over 100 miles) away. Many people don’t buy Mini’s because of that reason alone. Just wait for gas to reach $5 plus per gallon. I promise it will get there indefinetly. Look at how much demand there was for smart cars,(pieces of worthless metal on wheels). It blows my mind looking at how much those things cost. Why would anyone want one of those for $15K+ other than the fact that it is a fad car and is going to depreciate at a much higer rate than the Mini. One customer at our garage used to have a smart car, until he was charged $250 for its first oil service. Our garage is packed to the walls with work, and in my personal case, having an aging R53 makes a new Mini with a warranty and 36k worth of maintenance possibly more valuable than the difference in capital between selling my R53 and buying an R56. I am confident Mini’s strategy will work. Although Mini may be down 20% while ford is down 10%, just look at who has a larger percentage of debt. If Mini had to despirately empty showrooms with things like 2k cash back, or an employee discount program, I would not be surprised to see a zero or positive sales figure for the end of 2009. Keep in mind this is based only on the volume of cars they would be moving as opposed to last year. A program like this would likely hold Mini at a net loss unless the cars were pretty well accessorized.
dc11: Think of the cash flow from a showroom, and the cash flow from things attached to the showrooms called “service”. Even if the end result is not positive in sales, It is still going to be profitable from the service department attached, and will raise the overall capital allowing for even more long term growth and expansion of the Mini brand.</p>
<p>@<a href="#comment-263056" rel="nofollow">gokartride</a>:</p>
<p>What did I miss here?</p>
<p>You used to be the defender of all things MINI. What happened?</p>
<p>Anyway, welcome to the dark side!!</p>
<p>Mwaaahaaaaa!!! ;)</p>