Toronto’ raw design has brought life the MINI brand with a playful addition to Toronto’s commuter skyline. Located at the southwest corner of Eastern and Broadview avenues, the MINI showroom brightens up the surrounding post-industrial area currently in transition. It features extensive glazing and blends raw design’s vivid aesthetic with the graphic sensibility of the MINI brand. The design plays off the cool sophistication of the adjoining BMW Toronto dealership – also designed by raw design director Roland Rom Colthoff.
The 20,000-square-foot flagship features a solar thermal hot water system and an efficient foamed-in-place insulation system, along with an integrated storm-water retention plan that will reuse rainwater for landscape irrigation. The design mirrors MINI’s fuel-efficient, environmental outlook, and sets the standard for auto brands worldwide.
Named Best Emerging Practice by the Ontario Association of Architects, raw design is known for avant-garde thinking, evidenced by the MINI design. Says Roland Rom Colthoff, “The design captures the energy of the MINI brand through a straightforward modulation of rectangular showroom areas, which can be viewed as cars sweep up the curve of Eastern Avenue or onto the Don Valley Parkway.”
This landmark showroom is not only the flagship for MINI in Canada but will also ramp up the design standard for the brand internationally. For the first time, all eyes should be on Eastern Avenue.