mini santa

The Results

Total Number of Wishes
74,954
Countries Participating in Record
30
MINIs Sold Annually
285,000

The Brief

MINI, the world’s fastest growing premium small car brand, was poised to launch its latest model The MINI Paceman in January 2013. MINI wanted product launch ideas that would deliver engaging live events and powerful PR across Europe’s highly competitive automotive market.

The Solution

With the campaign taking place in December, Guinness World Records inaugurated a new title forLongest wish list to Santa. Live events brought the campaign to cities across Europe with The MINI Post Office allowing consumers to submit their wishes to Santa and book a test drive of MINI’s new model.

MINI took the completed wish list on an epic 3,500 km cross-continental trek from Milan to the edges of the Arctic Circle in Finland’s Rovaniemi to deliver the wishes to Santa Claus himself.

The new MINI Paceman model welcomed the record-breaking convoy and MINI family was joined by a member of motorsport royalty: Rauno Aaltonen, winner of the legendary 1967 Monte Carlo Rally, who took journalists on an artic adventure.

Not only did the record attempt provide a compelling story for the media it gave validity to the trip to Rovaniemi – a snowy, icy location which was ideal for showcasing the features of the new MINI Paceman, a cross-over SUV vehicle.

To set this world record, MINI has been busy on an international level, involving a total of 16 countries, spanning enough geography to amaze even Father Christmas himself, someone who certainly knows something about world tours.

— Maria Conti - PR and Communication - MINI