Pereira O'Dell Wants You to Stop DIY'ing MINI Coopers

MINI’s are BACK in stock after months of waiting out the supply chain crisis – and Pereira O’Dell is helping MINIacs everywhere celebrate. Due to supply chain shortages, many would-be MINI owners were struggling to get their hands on the real thing. But that never stopped them from expressing their love for the brand. 

During the pandemic, DIYing took the internet by storm and people were DIY’ing everything they couldn’t get their hands on. And since MINI fans are unlike any other car community – they were not letting the shortage of cars dampen their enthusiasm. For many who couldn’t get a real MINI Cooper, a MINI dupe was the next best thing.

To combat the DIY trend and announce that production is back up to 100%, MINI teamed up with Pereira O’Dell, creative AOR of over seven years, to create the Don’t Do It Yourself Department (which pays homage to the original Counter Counterfeit Commission, launched nearly 20 years ago by Crispin Porter + Bogusky in 2005). 

Now that the world is finally getting back to normal, MINI is officially shutting down the DDD and inviting people to go out and buy their own real MINIs.

While the campaign is admittedly a brand stunt, it’s a tribute to the loyal MINIacs who actually did DIY their own MINIs during the pandemic. Some of the DIYs were fabricated IRL (including the MINI fully crocheted out of yarn), but most of the images were created with Pereira O’Dell’s AI Lab using generative AI tools. The campaign is composed of a series of social videos rolling out on MINI’s TikTok channel throughout the month of April. 

“Innovation has always been central to MINI’s marketing efforts – whether it’s being the first car brand to enter the metaverse, or being a leader in sustainability,” says PJ Pereira, founder and creative chairman at Pereira O’Dell, “We were excited about their openness to use AI for the development of this campaign. Due to supply chain issues that lasted well beyond the pandemic, it would have been impossible to achieve what we wanted creatively simply because production wasn’t at 100% yet. AI allowed us to DIY thousands of MINIs at record speed."

The campaign – which jumps on TikTok’s 'dupe' trend and the DIY madness that actually ensued during the pandemic – includes both AI and IRL dupes created out of cardboard, duct tape, and even Ramen Noodles. Despite their rudimentary appearance, these DIY MINIs are a true testament to the brand’s passionate fan base, who are known for their enthusiasm and loyalty. “While other car brands have a community with a car inside, MINI is a car with a community inside. They are one of those brands that is blessed to have a strong community of self-sustaining enthusiasts. And we love helping celebrate them,” says PJ Pereira.