MINI COUNTRYMAN

Hey MINI, you're a smash hit with grown-ups and little ones alike

- Darren Wilson

WHEN it comes to building a brand, few have done it better than MINI. And I'm not just talking about logos, brochures or showrooms; it's the whole package. Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle said: "Give me a child until he is seven and I will show you the man." I suggest that, if you drove that child in a MINI, you'd have them hooked by four. Both of my grandchildren are totally sold on our Countryman, and the youngest is just two.

The buzzwords to activate the sat-nav's voice assistant are 'Hey MINI', and both children call this out so much that, last week, the infotainment set-up called time and told us it was disabling that phrase. It's got to the point that, when the kids are playing on their MINI racer (£99 from the MINI store), they say "Hey MINI, take me to Center Parcs" - or the sweet shop, or to see Santa or whereverbefore setting off on whichever imaginary trip takes their fancy. They enjoy the toy car, but it's born from their love of the real thing.