MotoringFile Most liked posts in thread: MINI Shocks the Automotive World With Scooter Concept

Yes...... but is there a JCW model?:devil:

 

My buddy Don already beat them too it....

 

It's not for me, but I like it a lot. EVs are the future, and this is a good direction for MINI to branch into.

 

Hmm...I would consider it. My commute is about 5.5 miles. Could be doable if the price is right.

 

Sometimes I just don't get it...

I do like the idea of electric scooters etc. There are several manufacturers making them already, though they are not main stream. What I don't get is all the descriptions of "design language" and the like that are better suited for shoes in Milan than real products for the masses. To me it just says "get what you can get elsewhere, but we'll charge a lot more for the rounded mirrors!"

I sure hope that this (along with MINI shoes, luggage and whatever) isn't the business model for success for the MINI brand. Even if these double the profit margins as a percentage of sales price compared to the cars, they'll have to sell them like jelly-beans to kindergartners to make any real impact in the bottom line! So really, it's just more licenced brand creation stuff, when it comes down to it.

Matt

 

Well, I've read that Harley makes more money off of sellling Harley "stuff" like clothing and accesories than they do selling the bikes.....

Maybe MINI is taking a page from their book?

 

Then sell your Mini and go pick up a Yugo... After all, it is just a car. :lol:

 

I totally don't get your point...

but it's not a first time for that either.

Matt

 

Here let me help you understand:

If you just want a scooter for transport from point A to point B, then any old scooter will do.

If you want something a notch above, then you might like what MINI has to offer.

Same goes with a Yugo. You can from point A to Point B with a Yugo, but the cool rounded mirrors of a MINI are a bit more desirable.

That better?

 

So..

where does MINI make scooters? Far as I can tell, they don't. And if they end up selling them, where will they come from? A Mini factory or a contract manufacturer? If MINI is having a problem making money on a brand that sells in the volume MINIs do, then how in the heck are they going to make money making an electric scooter?

So it's going to be a contract manufactured scooter with MINI badges on it. I don't see how it's going to pay for the marketing overhead that is already being put into the effort now, much less as a product that will be out there for a long time.

BMW made a bicycle too. I'm sure they sold a few. Is it really something in line with the core mission of BMW? Hmmmm, have to say no to that one.

But then, I don't see any reason to buy the MINI shoes or luggage. But there are those that do. I don't think Nike is loosing any sleep over MINI taking over a shoe market. But MINI does make a bit of money by having someone else make a shoe with MINI on it. Seems to me that an eMINI Scooter fits the MINI shoe model more than the MINI car model.

When the reseller game gets played, there is something called Margin Stacking. This is when the original producer has makes something for X and adds Y profit to it. Then the next player in the channel buys for X+Y and has to make some sort of "average" margin on it, otherwise it's a drain on resources cause the money can make more profit elsewhere. So they have to sell it for a marked up amount. That mark up isn't on just the cost of production, but on the cost of production plus the profit that the contract manufacturer charged. Then the retail outlet has to do the same thing..... What this does is makes the actual value statement to the end buyer really, really diluted. The only way it works is if there is such a premium put on the product for the label that is there (the MINI name) that the end buyer can overlook the fact that the actual value of the product is sold at a very, very stiff premium indeed. This isn't a Yugo vs MINI thing... It's a $2k scooter for a $5k price point thing.

So, if MINI isn't going to become a real player in the scooter market by building thier own, they are goint to re-badge someone elses technology with added curved mirrors and sell it for more than you could buy the same thing under the skin for a lot less. Or it's got to be an exculsive product with a premium price to justify the manufacturing chain and margin stack that it takes to bring it to market. Either way, the end user overpays for what they get.

Matt

 

Did you just say that scooter is going to be $5,000?

 

Or.......
They are rebadging a scooter that is starting out at a very low beginning price point from a place that makes lots of scooters with very low wage, in a country that is starting to invest money in E-battery technology. A country known for subsidizing unfair market trade. Then MINI adds their margins, for a product that some people will buy because of perceived MINI value.

Flip that scooter over and see if it has "Made in China" on the bottom?

 

No...

I was just using that as an example of how a $2k product gets a $5k price point by going through too many hands.

Really, what will make or break this as a product will be the quality and features at what price. I'd guess that the MINI brand on it will bump the price a bit, if it's a lot, then it will just be a toy for those with a lot of disposable income. If it's priced well for the value it delivers, it may be a big hit in cities where it would have a very compelling use case. I hope for the latter, I fear for the former. Knowing how MINI has gone in the past, I'm not holding my breath for a compelling value arguement.

Matt

 

From the "So What?" file.....

Porsche has been doing this for decades. I'm not sure what the big deal is beyond the brand faithful liking it (but that was expected right?)

 

My $500 scooter, that gets like a bazillion miles per gallon, sure looks like a cheaper alternative. I also like the road rash on the rear views Mrs. lotsie installed:cornut:

Mark

 

Scooters are popping up around here very fast. No license or helmet required (not sure how that happened). If BMW put a MINI badged scooter out cheap, so they would sell, then would they not get the brand name out to be seen more which might help car sales? Just a thought.

Jim

 

Pretty cool scooter!

They call them liquor cycles around here because all the folks who loose their license for DUI buy them to get to work and back.....could be a brand loyalty thing. LOL

 

Maybe Jack Daniels and Captain Morgan should brand some?

 

I'm sure they would agree with you that this scooter matches their shoe model. Is that a bad thing?

It's pretty clear that this is more of a brand identity thing than an effort to make loads or money or take over the scooter market...and there's nothing wrong with that. For a company that has spent years developing a lifestyle behind their brand/cars, producing something that doesn't directly provide massive revenue can still be beneficial to them. With things like MTTS, a fashion line, shoes, bikes, scooters, dealer parties, etc...MINI is trying to build themselves as more than just a car company. They want their company to have depth to it. They want to sell you an experience or lifestyle along with your car.

It's a marketing move. They are making a stylish, trendy scooter when scooters are starting to make a huge comeback (i.e. Honda Ruckus recent popularity boom). There's no doubt this scooter will make it to all the presses when it's released. I'm sure you'll see it on all the automotive news sites and it will probably make it's way into the New York Times auto section. This allows MINI to further project the concept that their cars are trendy, fashionable, hip, and environmentally friendly. We have a fashionable scooter, being ridden by a hipster, complete with a matching MINI mailbag, wearing a trendy v-neck, and running on a planet-friendly electric motor. That's exactly how they want the public to perceive their demographic. "Hey look, hip young people like driving MINI's and they care about the environment too!"

It's a growing business practice now that people are seeking "value" in their purchases. Creating a lifestyle or experience behind your product so that the customer feels that they are getting into more than just a car when they buy into your brand. Although many of us probably don't share this feeling, many people want to buy a MINI because they associate it with that hip culture. MINI needs to keep this image going and in order to do so, they need to keep offering new imagery to the public to enforce their brand identity.

So in theory, while they may not take over the scooter world, I'm sure they feel that this scooter will further define their brand identity which will in turn (hopefully) increase their car sales as more people seek to enter into that identity/lifestyle.

Ties directly into this: http://www.motoringalliance.com/forums/photos-video/3067-50-hours-market-research-condensed-into-2-min-trailer.html