That German was Bernd Pischetsrieder to be exact, former CEO of BMW AG. Bernd became a surprise ally in the recreation of the Mini nameplate. BMW came in at perhaps the lowest point in Rovers history. For some time the British were quite suspicious of this German invasion and quibbled over each aspect of the relationship. Websites were even developed to gather support against this unwelcome addition. What the apprehensive British contingent did not realize was that Pischetsrieder was part of the family. Bernd had an infinity for Mini since he was a little boy. You see Bernd had a favorite Uncle Alec, yes, no other than Alec Issigonis. Bernd understood how critical it was to keep the delicate fabric of the Rover organization afloat. Much to the surprise of the workers Bernd did not come in to "slash and burn" but rather became the herald of keeping the continuity of the workers and the factories they worked in. Bernd literally fought to the end to keep the long term home of Mini at Longbridge, the factory first earmarked for the mini revival. First BMW needed to put their attention towards the Rover 75 in an effort to "clean up" the model line and make it a viable entity. At first the Mini was destined to be little more than a niche vehicle that would follow in the lines of other niche cars such as the Mazda Miata. BMW had no intention of making the Mini a brand; it was to part of an overriding product line. Bernd continued to pour money into Rover but with little to show for it. Back in Germany, certain employees where to become the new face of Mini. They took this responsibility seriously. They realized that Mini needed to be different than other BMW products. The "crew" began to wear orange tee shirts and blue jeans, paramount to a misdemeanor crime in the BMW headquarters. They became the "cool guys" who looked at the whole process from a different angle. The 75 became a reality; however sales didn't really ever take off. Back at headquarters attention was now turned to the Mini, the second coming for it and the Rover rejuvenation. The "men in orange" continued their "counter culture" approach, as the Mini hit the drawing board. To the surprise of the Mini loyalists, many of whom were behind those anti-BMW websites, the "men in orange" wanted to keep the Mini closer to its heritage as opposed to the Rover group that fought to redirect the Mini towards their "Inspiration" show car.
Enter Frank Stephenson. Born in Morocco, raised in Europe, educated in California. Frank was the winner of the Mini design contest that looked internationally for talent. Stephenson, who was working in California for GM since his graduation from the Art Center College in San Francisco, captured the essence of the new Mini. It is ironic that both Issigonis and Stephenson shared the same Mediterranean roots. There must be something special in that ocean breeze because Frank was able to perfectly channel the creative genius of Issigonis and provide a new generation with a "Mini experience". The battle was won but the war was yet to be done. Stephenson spent many a late night trying to work with the English design team, who were increasingly looking towards the "door stop" design. One night Frank returned to his home dejected that he had not broken through to the perfect design concept that would join together the fractions within the design team. On five squares of Bounty towels he ripped from the dispenser beside the kitchen sink he began to channel Issigonis. The paper towels somehow allowed Frank to create with the same abandon that Alec had on that cocktail napkin a half century before. He decided that to reach the modern interpretation of the design he would look back to the original and design an updated model for every ten years in the fashion the BMC would have if they had decided to update the Mini along the way. He finished with the modern day Mini
. As dawn broke he took his late night design exercise into the studio. To his delight it won the approval of both sides of the design team. The new Mini was on its way. It is amazing that "the new way of thinking" that Issigonis brought to the Mini not only created a landmark car but created a template for creative thinking so many years later. The delight of this breakthrough didn't last long as trouble was brewing in Stuttgart. BMW's controlling interests were increasingly aware of the major losses at Rover. They could not condone the loss any longer. The showdown came between BMW and Pischetsrieder, in a scene reminiscent of the Wild West. BMW drew both guns however, and felt that if Pischetsrieder was not willing to make further cut backs, or move the Mini production to the Cowley plant from the Longbridge plant, it was time for a change at the helm. On February 5, 1999 Pischetsrieder submitted his resignation. With Pischetsrieder no longer able to protect Mini under his wing Mini stood alone and vulnerable like a shore side house in a hurricane. The "men in orange" now simply became easier to pick out as if they had a bulls eye on them. The new head of BMW Joachim Milberg, however, turned out to be an unlikely sympathizer who actually directed funds towards Mini under the cover. Without Milberg, the slowing "drip" of money that Pischetsrieder had felt pressured into reducing, would have continued. Milberg obviously was drawn into the power of the Mini and was able to have the vision to see the potential success. Meanwhile back in Stuttgart, BMW who had maintained they were in the dance for the long hall now gave an open ear to bids for the failing Rover. The first bid came from a private equity firm, who looked to buy the entire Rover group. They planned to reduce the number of vehicles in half along with many jobs. Like a knight in armor the former president of Rover, who was president before BMW came in, gathered a group of loyalists together and under the Phoenix name bought Rover back with the promise of keeping jobs alive especially at the Longbridge plant. BMW agreed happily however at the last minute they pulled Mini back from the deal in trade for the Longbridge plant. BMW now had to move the Mini to the Cowley plant. The move was completed over the course of a single season with trucks working around the clock to drive equipment from one plant to another. BMW transformed the Cowley plant into a state of the art facility with little resemblance to the former Rover plant. All was not settled yet. The suits still continued to tighten the "drip" to the point that Mini was going into a comma. The "men in orange" would not see this happen so in a burst of quick thinking they went against the "higher ups" and showed the finished Mini ahead of schedule at a high attended Mini event celebrating its birthday. The fans were speechless. Needless to say this put BMW between a rock and a hard place. They could not now go back on their word, so the Mini continued on with such costly features as Hydraulic steering similar to the Porsche. Mini was saved from the brink, but not without turmoil. The Longbridge plant that Pischetsrieder had worked so hard to save ended up seeing many job cuts as the Knight in armor, Phoenix began to fall apart from enormous debt. Phoenix ended up selling out to a Chinese company which has not kept the continuity of the plant. Mini was now on. This saga shows us that you must stand strong, and in the end you will not be wrong, care about your fellow man regardless of you fate, fight for what is right and don't give in. The end result can be achieved many ways, some right and some not, don't be bought, keep your sight in check, and you might just succeed. The Mini was a bigger success than ever first thought, it has taught that small can sell big if you just believe that each little step has mattered just like a beach is made up of each grain of sand, it's now time for the new Mini and this time it is penned by Hildebrand.......
