Mini Transforms New Delhi Parking Garage Into Slick Nightclub

The car company debuted its Countryman model in India with an elaborate event it dubbed "Not

Normal."

Showtime Events had a week to create the

space, which included painting the ceiling and

walls black and removing all of the bumps and

other traffic-calming features in the garage to

create a smooth and safe floor. Showtime

worked with local and U.K.-based vendors on

the launch including African Motion Picture

Company for the projections, lighting designer

Tom Lesh, Sound.com on the sound, and

Hyatt Regency for the catering. More than 400

crew members worked on the project.

NEW DELHI A New Delhi parking garage

provided a fitting venue for the launch of the

Mini Countryman in India. But with an event

theme of "Not Normal," chosen to reflect the

car company's design principles, producer

Showtime Events had to make the normal

setting for a car anything but.

The answer for the May 4 event was to

recast the Eros Corporate Tower's 34,000-

square-foot parking garage as a nightclub

with painted black walls, thumping music,

and LED lights. As guests drove up, three

vertical banners let guests know they were

in the right place and introduced the "Not

Normal" theme. While driving up to

reserved parking on the fifth level, guests

passed signs with Mini images and speed-related messages such as "Hit Full Throttle" or "Dust

to Dawn" that helped them navigate to their reserved parking spots. Elevators wrapped in Mini

branding carried the 800 guests to the party, which progressed over three levels of the garage.

The event included a reception, fashion show, and a

rooftop lounge where guests could take in 3-D video

mapping projection on an 18-story building next

door. Guests were also driven in Minis to another

level of the garage for a stunt driving performance,

and cameras installed in the chauffeured cars

captured the guests' reactions to the skids and drifts.