With nightclub quality speakers pumping from a glossy-black, two-storeyed building and a crowd of glamorous party-goers waiting to enter via a red carpet, you would be forgiven for thinking that a glitzy new nightspot had alighted on Newmarket, Auckland, recently. As it happens, on 25 June, the event marked the opening of the Mini Garage, with that well-known neon wordmark lighting up the Broadway street-side of the jet-black building.

The interior of the custom-built premises welcomes those acquainted with the Mini brand into a familiar environment; dark-tiled floors set against ebony walls punctuated by bright digital screens, neon-lit LED frames and the shiny cars themselves, invite your admiration.

But to call the dramatic space, created by owner Team McMillan, a car dealership would be to underestimate the dual-purpose event venue and showroom. Located directly under the central Auckland motorway viaduct, the Mini Garage wants to be more than a glamourous and edgy embodiment of the luxury Mini brand, it seeks to be a destination in its own right.

The 650m2 showroom, which can display up to nine cars at any one time, is a purpose-built space divided into five areas, with the 160m2 mezzanine above used as staff and meeting rooms. The eight-metre-stud ground level is home to the showroom. The Oxford Café, a lifestyle area (where merchandise can be purchased), the central hub, which divides the showroom from the other spaces and a side wing dedicated to Mini’s performance car, John Cooper Works.

Allan Taylor, the architect who worked on the project, said one concern was that the entirely black space – a trademark of Mini dealerships as well as a corporate identity (CI) requirement – was at risk of looking bleak. “That’s why we put in punchy lighting and large-scale neon graphics,” he said.

Taylor said the level of collaboration on the project was high, with CI regulations stipulated by a specification document from the BMW Group headquarters in Munich, Germany creating a non-negotiable template, as well as consultation with Team McMillan and managing director Ian Gibson, ensuring staff members had input into the design and functionality of their respective areas.

However, the sales staff had little input into its space as CI regulations reigned in this area: charcoal shag-pile rugs placed beneath custom-designed desks, simple orange drum pendant lights, mid-century orange chairs. This is all separated from the showroom area by steel-framed screens, criss-crossed with black and neon-orange bungee cord: all CI specified.

The negotiation between enforcing the integrity of Mini branding and the New Zealand flavour Team McMillan wanted to inject into the space – a graffiti artwork by Kiwi artist Otis Frizzell takes pride of place – was balanced equally against the need to keep the palette simple, and the space consistent and functional.

Taylor said computer modelling was the key, not only in creating a bold statement space, but also in communicating the design with the various parties.

Lighting was also a crucial element in customising the space he said. The balance between bringing light into the showroom, while detracting from the black ceiling insulation was met with the creation of three rectangular bands of lighting, suspended 5.8 metres off the floor, creating a hanging LED racetrack-like element.

A dozen or so digital screens, varying in size and playing Mini advertising material are marked with large neon LED framing in Mini’s colours of yellow, orange or red. These frames are repeated throughout the space, creating an ambience “that is two steps away from a nightclub”, Taylor says.

The level of automation in the building also has Gibson excited. Door locks, digital communication systems, video walls, lighting and even security cameras can all be digitally controlled, with remote access available. The automation extends to events, with Mini planning to hire the space out as a venue. Gibson says the showroom has been designed so that no staging is required – the sound system is nightclub quality and security, LED lights and video screens can all be pre-programmed to customise an event.

So if you see the Mini Garage pumping next time you are in Broadway, rest assured you have simply stumbled across one glamorous car dealership.