At Milan Design Week, the world première of the new MINI concept car also celebrated the meeting of two icons of style: the famous British city car and Paul Smith, the British designer who founded one of the world’s best-known fashion brands. Together with Oliver Heilmer, Head of MINI Design, he illustrates the concept of the MINI Recharged which, he explains, was created to explore the possibilities of sustainable design because “three characteristics describe this car perfectly: quality, sustainability and functionality”. Only last summer, Paul Smith had worked with the company on another concept car that was radically reduced and sustainable even by name, the MINI STRIP, introduced in Munich and now displayed alongside the new model in its Milan showroom.
In reality, with the new one-off being revamped as an all-electric version (the engineers, and new MINI partners, of ‘Recharged Heritage Limited’ are in charge of installing the 72 kW electric motor), it is the first MINI Paul Smith Edition from 1998, in Alec Issigonis’s version. Both are painted a brilliant blue, stolen from one of the designer’s favourite shirts, promptly displayed for all to see, while the battery box is lime green and strictly branded.
The interior deliberately omits trim parts and the body with its bare, uncovered floor displays rustic recycled rubber floor mats. “When you move into an old aunt’s flat, out of respect you don’t change everything, but you modernise it a bit,” says Smith, pointing out that, in addition to the specific choice of materials with a view to sustainability, the interior is complemented by some ad-hoc solutions. Accessories such as the magnet next to the steering wheel for the indispensable smart phone, which replaces almost all the old buttons and functions on the dashboard, and the completely removable steering wheel to make it easier for anyone, of any size or height, to get in and out of the car.
