Bye bye MINI Countryman Cooper S All4... Miss you!
Sytner Birmingham, 13.08.10 DAY 22
What a fab event to end a fab tour, the guys at Sytner Birmingham had all donned checked shirts for the Countryman Tour and even though they were a little disappointed when we hadn't brought bales of hay to their showroom..... they were still super excited and very enthusiastic about the event. The event was really busy despite it being a very wet Friday evening and the team kept a buzz about the car with the customers and booked in several test drives and made some sales!
Sytner Oldbury, 12.08.10 DAY 21
Lots of the MINIs on the forecourt ad in the showroom at Sytner Oldbury had little ducks all over them and this really foxed myself and Moose, why are there ducks everywhere??? All became clear when Paul explained they are running a hook-a-duck type event from a paddling pool alongside the Countryman where guests could win anything from a MINI T-Shirt to a chunk off their new car!!!
Sytner Sutton Coldfield, 11.08.10 DAY 20
The team at Sytner Sutton Coldfield have taken it upon themselves to wear wonderfully bright pink and pink and purple striped shirts - I am told this is so they are easily spotable in the showroom! They looked very smart anyway!
The event ran smoothly with people attending individually allocated appointments with the sales team, being greeted and shown around the car.
My favourite customer was the man who spent half an hour asking me about performance and handling of the Countryman then took me outside to show me his Nissan qashqai - complete with Blues and Twos and explained that this is what he wants to do to a MINI Countryman!
Benham Wolverhampton. 10.08.10 DAY 19
Brent and the team couldn't wait till the car got into the show room before climbing in to get their first glimpse and check out the newest edition to the MINI portfolio. These guys are a great bunch, lots of genuine enthusiasm about the Countryman and they really set the tone for the event with a buzz of excitement resonating throughout. Footfall was steady but constant and the team secured several sales. Well done guys!
Stratstone Derby, 09.08.10 DAY 18
Week 4 of the Countryman tour certainly went off with a bang in Derby, Sandra had pulled all the stops out to makes her guests feel special with gorgeously tasty canapes, a wine tasting corner and a live guitarist for added entertainment!!!
The team were fully prepped, educated and hyped for the event and I have to say they really did do a fantastic job! I received a lot of praise for the team when talking to their customers and the Countryman went down a storm with the team making lots of test drive appointments and selling some cars there and then... I thoroughly enjoyed myself at the event, along with the many guests, thank you to Sandra and her crew and to Steve Dethick the guitarist for his soulful version on Hotel California!
Halliwell Jones North Wales, 06.08.10 DAY 17
Sunny North Wales was the final stop of week three of our Countryman Tour. The welcome from Rob and the team was warm, they are a very friendly bunch and were all super excited to be seeing the Countryman for the first time.
The event ran smoothly with lots of interest and a couple of sales. Several customers who had already put down their deposits came down to get their first glimpse of what will be their new car and to confirm final specs. The team were very proud to show them around the car and everybody said how they couldn't wait for theirs to arrive! Success!
Halliwell Jones Chester, 05.08.10 DAY 16
The Countryman, driver Moose and myself headed north to Chester, the dealership is an old little chef which has been converted into a huge MINI showroom and the Countryman had its own little MINI adventure up in a lift and into situ!
The evening unfolded with a steady flow of people, buzzing with excitement about the latest edition to the MINI showroom. Stewart from the dealership did a sterling job of juggling questions form multiple groups as the customers were full of questions!
Lots of test drives were booked in and some sales secured as well.... Well done guys!
Blue Bell Crewe, 04.08.10 DAY 15
Paul and his team at Blue Bell were literally falling over each other to get their first glimpse of the Countryman and as soon as it was in the showroom it was a competition to see how many of them we could fit in it at once, keen to explore its features and admire it!
Catering was posh... sushi and wonderfully cute individual champagne bottles aplenty!
The event was very well planned, thought out and structured into 3 time slots, with not 1 but 2 speeches PER SLOT, thats 6 speeches peeps!! The atmosphere created at the event by it being run this way was awesome, spirits were high for the whole evening and everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves, even the customers.. haha!
Dean Quartermaine, Chairman of Nottinghamshire MINI Club attended the event, he was singing the Countrymans praises... "Its a family car but with style.... It stands out from the crowd!" (think he loves it!)
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| Dean - "Loves it" ! |
Knights North Staffs, 03.08.10 DAY 14
Dealership manager Craig could not save his excitement for today so he had popped down the road yesterday for an exclusive pre-sneak-peek-peek! So when we arrived today he was ready, showroom cleared out with oodles of room for our Countryman to occupy, the guys here are lucky enough to have a huge house for the MINIs.
The team seem a very competitive bunch and the event started with a jolly pep-talk from Craig. The event ran through fueled with umpteen "I dont know what they are but they look delicious, fancy and tasty and I want to eat them all" style canapes. Queries were taken, questions were asked, answered and the team secured several test drives and a sale... Good one guys!!
Knights South Staffs, 02.08.10 DAY 13
Week 3 of the MINI roadshow began and the Countryman visited Staffordshire to meet Ben and the team at Knights South. We made the most of the cosy space and the Countryman went down a treat with all attendees. For some folk, it was their 2nd peek as they had been to one of the previous events at a different dealership with a different model.... We have officially got a following!
The team worked very hard and answered all queries, the event ran very smoothly with nearly all customers getting a model "spec'd up" and 3 sales secured.
Stratstone Chesterfield, 31.07.10 DAY 12
Dave and his team in Chesterfield sure know how to "do a do" the catering was out of this world, feeding the 5,000 it seemed! Plenty for everyone and some to spare! The evening ran smoothly and the team secured a massive 5 sales, the first deal being closed only 35 minutes into the event... thank you very much sir!!!
This is a great team who well deserve these sales and those to come from the Countryman tour, they gave up their Saturday evenings and really made the most of it! Well done guys!
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| Dave and the team celebrate their massive 5 sales at their event on Saturday... Cheers!!!!! |
Sytner Nottingham, 30.07.10 DAY 11
Day 11 of the midlands tour took the Countryman to Nottingham were MINI are blessed with a large showroom and the Countryman received a warm welcome from Dan and his enthusiastic team. The evening ran well with top class hospitality, lots of interest and test-drive bookings and ended with a pre-order..! Well done team, fab evening!
Soper of Lincoln, 29.07.10 DAY 10
Next stop for the Midlands team was Lincoln who had a very busy event with people staying for a long time to enjoy the evening in a warm, friendly and customer focused atmosphere. Tim, Laura and the team at Sopers are on first name terms with lots of their customers and everyone who came down was buzzing with excitement at their invitation for a first peek at the latest edition to the MINI portfolio.
Listers Boston, 28.07.10 DAY 9
The Lincolnshire leg of the Countryman tour continued to Boston where the team had booked a catering team to come and cook up a BBQ for the event which went down a super-treat for the sneak-peek! This was followed up with coffee and donuts. All in all a very relaxed ad friendly atmosphere for the event which was more about quality than quantity as the majority of those who attended will go on to purchase a Countryman vehicle! Sounds good to me!
Astle Grimsby, 27.07.10 DAY 8
Astle Grimsby welcomed our MINI Countryman with open arms and so did half of Lincolnshire MINI Club who presented challenging questions which we managed to dig out all answers to...!!!! Lots of interest and people milling around for the whole evening. Marie had organised some amazing MINI branded cupcakes for the event which were truly amazing (and scrumptious) and added a real MINI "quirk" to the event. The staff had also organised for every attendee to be presented with a £100 voucher for their next MINI purchase..... generous and very good taste... we like! Brill event, well done guys!
Stratstone Hull, 26.07.10 DAY 7
Week 2 on the Midlands tour and our Countryman Cooper S visited Hull, continuing to wow the nation! Andy and his team displayed a warm welcome, wonderfully extravagant looking canapes and lots of enthusiasm. The event ran smoothly and the team secured a sale from a couple who had been looking at the BMW 4 wheel drives previously... well done guys and a great start to week 2... how time flies!!!!
Stratstone Doncaster, 24.07.10 DAY 6
The weekend arrived and people were milling around in anticipation of the sneak preview of the Countryman, the event ran well with Alan Corbishley the regional manager at the helm. Alan has attended every event this week and given up his Saturday to support the dealers he has been an invaluable asset to our tour team all week. Thank you!
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| OCS BANNER |
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| STEVE, MYSELF (ROWENA) AND ALAN-TEAM MIDLANDS WEEK ONE.... MISS YOU! |
Sytner Sheffield, 23.07.10 DAY 5
As Friday evening drew in we received a warm welcome from Mark and his fantastic team in Sheffield, the showroom was buzzing with fun, funk and excitement as the guests poured in. The food and drinks flowed through the event with top class hospitality from the gang and everybody had a fantastic time. One MINI fanatic turned up with her MINI handbag and MINI umbrella announcing her next MINI purchase would be the MINI Countryman!
The team booked in a massive amount of test drives and made a phenomenal 5 sales in the first 2 hours of the event! A massive thank you and well done to Mark and everyone at Sytner!
Sandals Huddersfield, 22.07.10 DAY 4
The MINI Countryman Cooper S All 4 continued on its journey to Huddersfield to meet Paul and his team, they were waiting with baited breath as it rolled into their showroom, eager to have their first peeks at the new edition to the MINI portfolio. Lots of eager customers followed with lots of "ooh", "aah"s and paparazzi style photography. The theme of the evening seemed to be "MINIS driving MINIS" as there were several families with young children who just couldn't wait to get behind the wheel! ... Come back in 16 years guys!
Sandals Wakefield, 21.07.10 DAY 3
The next stop on the Countryman whistle-stop tour of the “MINI Midlands” was sunny Wakefield. David and his team had invited a group of friendly guests who were itching to sneak a peek at the Countryman. They were a knowledgeable bunch and fortunately regional manager, Alan, was also present and well equipped to answer even the most demanding of questions (see below).
Many of the event-goers brought their families and there were lots of thrilled children jumping around the spacious back seats of the Countryman. All in all another hugely successful day.
Scotthall Leeds, 20.07.10 DAY 2
The Countryman road-show moved down the A61 to a rousing reception in Leeds. Georgina had pulled out all the stops with tasty canapes, champagne reception and even a DJ spinning the decks. Despite some thundery showers, well over 80 people came to catch a glimpse of the sleek new MINI. There was a real sense of anticipation amongst the guests and from their response, these MINI enthusiasts were not left disappointed. The feedback was excellent, with a large proportion of the guests signing up for test drives.
Stratstone Harrogate, 19.07.10 DAY1
Day one and the Countryman went down a storm, with lots of excited customers, several pre-orders, comments such as "awesome", "wowzer" and "incredible", the latest edition to the MINI portfolio really did knock the socks off the awaiting punters! The Countryman even passed the cricket bag/golf clubs test much to the delight of one gentleman (see pic). What a great start to the tour, thankyou to Nigel and all at Stratstone Harrogate.
