One of the most prominent marketing experts in the automotive industry changes sides. After more than seven years with Audi, Hans-Peter Kleebinder draws a line under his corporate career.

In future, Kleebinder wants to be on the road as an independent expert for new mobility and social media.

[…] Actually, there are a lot of examples that show how middle-aged marketing managers realize impressive digital strategies in spite of their education. Hans-Peter Kleebinder, 47, is one of them. Once he expedited the digital marketing for Mini, then he did for Audi.

BMW sells in 2009 more than 33.000 automobiles in Germany

Munich – The crisis in the automobile industry and the sluggishness of premium manufacturers have not been able to slow down the mini: BMW, the parent company, has never sold as many of the small cars on the German market as it did this year. “We estimate to sell more than 33,000 minis in Germany in 2009, which is a record,” tells Hans-Peter Kleebinder, Sales Manager for the Mini in Germany, to the WELT newspaper. In the medium term, Kleebinder wants to make Germany the second-largest market for the Mini, ahead of Great Britain. […]

[…] It was August 9th 2001, when the new Mini was introduced to the world public. In more than over 20 countries at the same time, the small car asked with its goggle eyes. “Is it love?” This was intended to be highly emotional, and I think it was a success. The Mini sold so strongly that production soon had to be massively increased. That is marketing by Hans-Peter Kleebinder […]

(Kalka Jochen, handbook print advertising, MI publishing house, Landsberg, 2009)