MINI grows big

Amidst the uncertainty created by the proposed New Vehicle Excise Tax, British United Automobiles Inc. (BUAI), the exclusive distributor of MINI vehicles in the country, remains bullish with its Philippine market plans. And with dealership expansion a core part of MINI’s strategy in the country, BUAI formally opened its new pop-up store located in Alabang.

Commenting on the occasion, Peter “Sunny” Medalla, head of MINI Asia said: “MINI Global City opened its doors more than seven years ago, and introduced a whole new world of motoring fun to MINI enthusiasts in the Philippines. As the MINI community has grown in the Philippines over the years, we felt it was time to expand our footprint in Manila and offer customers and prospects another location to experience the passion behind the MINI brand.”

“We are excited to open this brand-new MINI Pop Up Store and offer MINI enthusiasts in Alabang and surrounding areas an opportunity to engage with the brand,” said Willy Q. Tee Ten, President of British United Automobiles Inc.

Located at the Molito Complex, Madrigal Business Park, Commerce Avenue in Alabang, Muntinlupa, the 216 square-meter MINI Alabang Pop Up Store showcases three vehicles (rotated every two months) and a full range of the latest MINI Accessories and Lifestyle products for existing customers and prospects coming from South of Manila.

Though purely a sales office, the pop up store also serves to gauge customer demand, which may lead to a full-blown showroom in the near future.

In his welcoming remarks, Medalla said that through the efforts of Tee Ten and his team, the Philippines has become one of MINI’s strongest markets. In fact, in less than seven years, it has become MINI’s third strongest market just behind Singapore and Indonesia. As a matter of fact, the Philippines will have one of the biggest delegations to the MINI John Cooper Works (JCW) Track Day at the Nürburgring with eight participants. MINI Asia ran the promotion earlier in the year, which awards all JCW owners with a two-day track day experience at the famed German race track. And with the arrival of MINI Philippines’ first-ever diesel offering, the Countryman, Medalla expects sales to grow even more in the coming years.

Meanwhile, Tee Ten has expressed his confidence that MINI will continue to flourish in the Philippines even with the government’s proposal to increase new vehicle excise tax. Though they could be hit with at least P668,000 per car in additional taxes by next year (P824,000 in 2019), they are countering that by bringing plug-in hybrid versions of their cars starting with the Countryman by next year. The proposed revisions to the new vehicle excise tax exempts purely electric, hybrid, or plug-in hybrid vehicles. However, Tee Ten said that their plans are definite, regardless of the government’s plan to exempt these vehicles or not.

The MINI Cooper S E Countryman All4 as the model is officially known, draws from the BMW Group’s iPerformance expertise. A 1.5-liter 3-cylinder gasoline engine powers the front wheels while a set of electric motors power the rear wheels. All in all, this special Countryman produces a combined output of 224 horsepower while consuming just 2.1 liters of fuel every 100 kilometers (47.6 km/L).

The MINI Alabang Pop Up Store is open from Mondays to Saturdays, 8:30 AM to 7 PM and public holidays from 9 AM to 6 PM. Test drives are also available at all times.