Returning with exhilarating spirit, the much-awaited MINI-styled festival, MINIfest 2023, roared back onto the scene with a fun energy that captivated MINI enthusiasts (MINIacs) and car fanatics alike across the country to celebrate MINI’s timeless charm.

The one-day festival returned bigger and better this year, taking place at Malaysia’s century-old largest railway depot, the Sentul Depot in Kuala Lumpur, and setting a new milestone by attracting more than 2,300 visitors, uniting MINIacs and igniting the passion for the iconic MINI.

With the spirit of “Big Love and Big Fun”, MINIfest 2023 gathered MINIacs of all ages to embrace a world of diversity by uniting local music, eccentric art, entertainment and delectable delights.

A number of fun-filled activities were lined up, including MINI showcases, exclusive test drives, live painting, live entertainment, lucky draws and engaging workshops that fostered a sense of community among the MINIacs.

“The MINIfest is actually for the MINI community to get together because they [MINIacs] love to do things together. The foundation [of MINIfest] is the same every year, in that we want everyone to have fun,” said the Head of MINI Malaysia Linnet Yew.

Yew highlighted that MINIfest 2023 had captured a captivating sight of MINIacs convoying together to the venue with their MINI cars while sharing their passion for driving the MINI on the roads.

“It is a lot of fun watching a group of MINI owners driving their own MINI to a MINI community event like this. This is what we wanted to see — people enjoying themselves and just having fun over the weekend and sharing the love of driving the MINI,” she said.

According to Yew, MINIfest offered a test drive at the venue for people to experience the joy of driving a MINI and explore their MINI dreams, especially for those who may have been hesitant to visit a showroom.

“We welcome everybody at MINIfest. For those who don’t own a MINI and feel shy to walk into our showroom, this is the opportunity to come and experience a test drive of the MINIs,” she said.

Showcasing a unique twist, MINIfest gave MINIacs to opportunity display their MINI collection, turning the festival into a MINI collector’s paradise.

“I’m glad that this year I managed to participate in MINIfest to show my car so that I can share my passion for MINI with others, and it is great to see other MINI collections as well,” said Kelvin Kwoon Kwan Wei.

Kwoon’s limited edition of the colourful MINI Paul Smith 1998 took a spot at MINIfest 2023’s entrance and stole the show as his car still maintained a harmonious aesthetic MINI design.

Car enthusiast Joshua Edgar expressed his sheer joy of attending MINIfest as he had the chance to see rare collections of MINI, which reignited his passion for the iconic MINI brand.

“I enjoyed going to the car event and looking at all those cars because we rarely get to see some of these on the road. But here at MINIfest, we get to see so many MINI collections,” he said.

Besides the MINIacs’ owner showcase, MINIfest took visitors to the MINI Garage with an exquisite exhibition of MINI legacy and its innovative transformation through the display of MINI Classic, MINI 3-Door R53, MINI 3-Door R56, MINI Coupe R58, MINI Countryman R60 and MINI Paceman JCW R61.

Meanwhile, Syazzana Ahmad Safian, who recently joined the MINI club owners, said MINIfest allowed her to connect with fellow MINIacs and exchange experiences that come with owning a MINI.

“Here at MINIfest, we get to meet many MINI owners, which allows us to share experiences with each other. I own a MINI electric, so I would love to connect with other MINI electric owners to share our experiences and knowledge of the model,” said Syazzana.

MINI owner Ahmad Khuzaimah said MINIfest is the perfect place for MINIacs to connect, exchange valuable insights and bond over their love for the MINI.

“I rarely get a chance to meet or have a meaningful conversation with other MINI owners, but I get to do that here at MINIfest. Also, the environment here was different compared with the showroom. It’s more friendly here as you get to interact with MINI car owners instead of the seller,” he said.

MINIfest also left an exhilarating experience for the vendors, including a local electrical vehicle (EV) charging operator EV Connection Sdn Bhd (EVC), with its JomCharge network and app.

“I think this MINIfest gives exposure to our brand and lets more people know about our coverage [EV charger port], where to find us [JomCharge] across Malaysia, and how to use our app,” said EV Connection customer experience specialist Edward Toh.

Toh said MINIfest had become a platform for JomCharge's business together with other vendors to gain exposure and connect with a dynamic community of MINIacs. MINIfest 2023 boasts a diverse range of brand partners, including MINI car boot vendors, which offered a plethora of enticing products for MINIacs to purchase.