Japanese carmaker opens three European pop-up stores

(NMGB)

Nissan has opened three pop-up stores across Europe as it kicks off the marketing campaign for the forthcoming arrival of the 2010 Cube.

The marketing campaign features stores in trendy hotspots such as London's Brick Lane, Berlin's Karl Marx Allee and Paris's 10th arrondissement, open until the end of the year. The stores double as a showcase for Japanese design by day and entertainment spaces in the evening, hosting fashion, cinema and music installations.

To be invited to the evening events, potential buyers have been asked to register their interest at the local language version of the "CubeList," Nissan's virtual waiting list for the limited edition Cube. Billed as "Private, Privileged and International", the only snag for Nissan fans could be that the CubeList itself is equally exclusive, requiring users to complete a 24-question quiz to gain access. Nissan has also promised that several Cubes will be on the road, handing out invitation cards for the site.

Nissan's unconventional marketing campaign is designed to reflect the unconventional car; the Cube's styling has attracted mixed reviews from the press. First launched in Japan over ten years ago, the 2010 model features a 1.5 liter engine in Europe and Japan (1.8 liters in the US), a "social space" interior design and a range of advanced option such as push button ignition, USB connection or a rear-view monitor.

Car makers are constantly seeking innovative methods to draw attention in a crowded advertising space. On November 30, Audi unveiled the new A8 at an invitation-only art event on Miami Beach, building a temporary structure at Design Miami (December 1-5) to house the "Art of Progress" exhibition while the city hosts multiple contemporary art events in the context of Art Miami. The exhibition will be open until December 5. Nissan itself is also no stranger to creating marketing buzz; at last year's Los Angeles Auto Show it used a futuristic "augmented reality" technology to allow visitors to interact with a three-dimensional model of the car on the screen.

UK website: http://www.cubelist.co.uk
France website: http://www.cubelist.fr
German website: http://www.cubelist.de

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