This will probably be the hardest thing I will write, and has given me many sleepless nights so I apologise if this becomes a rambling statement reference the brand I love, MINI , and here as a club which I founded back in 26 April 2012.

Let`s get straight to the point of Covid. This has hit many of us hard. In more ways than many of us had ever anticipated. Back in December 2019 we had some awesome plans for the club. We brought together some great MINI addicts to help promote the club and try and bring that wow factor to the club that we once had when we started. Who knew that a month later Covid would come along and start putting just that little bit of pressure on clubs like us and how we could interact with one another and share our passion. As one month came, and then the next, it was pretty clear that we had to be in this for the long haul and look for a brighter summer, then autumn and so forth. Were now in January, it`s 2021, and who knows when any kind of normality can bring us all back together. I’m sure I’m not alone in saying this, each and everyone one of us will be far more conscious who enters our personal space. We wont been able to congregate under event shelters, let alone walk to another club stand and mingle, DO NOT TOUCH signs will be everywhere, it just wont be like what were used to.

The forum here at FULL ON MINIs has always been a passion of mine. I`ve wanted it as a hub for MINI owners like yourselves (and me) to share what we have and help others around us. Its a place with much knowledge. Little nuggets of information in the tech sections that I always refer back to when needed. My MINI has been a pain in the ass at times but I’ve always managed to look back here for that (oh yeah that’ll fix it). It’s been great to document it with build threads and areas of banter and photos which has always been fun to be involved with. As the years have gone by the traffic in the forum has died, lets be honest. Despite it being 99.9% free to use there isn’t any engagement any more. Engagement is what makes a community work, and this doesn’t work like it used to. Its a hard thing to see. I dont like talking about money but last year saw us make £64 from stickers and 2 memberships. FULL ON MINIs costs approximately £500 a year to run with the gap being personally covered by myself. To support local businesses in 2020 I also covered the additional sponsorship costs. Where my faith in the MINI brand remains, it`s not technically viable for me to continually cover the costs like I have done since 2012 and where we dont know how the future will be. Sure things will be better, I get that, but when?

As the owner of the club I have to make decisions on how we can operate going forward. So not to be biased with my decision I have discussed to those close to me and who are involved with the club behind the scenes and it`s a sad thing for me to say now is the time for FULL ON MINIs to sadly close its doors to the world.

We`ve had the best of times. The best shows. The best MINI Owners. The best MINIs.

I have made a pledge that we remain until 28th Feb 2021 for those to revisit the club and check out the gallery sections, the build threads and more. To remember and save the memories we once had. With the closure of the site and other media outlets like Instagram and Facebook, all data will be deleted and will not be recoverable. This is to protect your personal data.

May I say a huge thank you to EVERYONE who has supported FULL ON MINIs. My wife, Ian, Lewis, Dan, Nicola, sponsors and more.

And to that end, be safe everyone. Look after yourselves.

Simon