With a broader adoption of electric cars, there are numerous other facets of the transportation industry that need to be upgraded as well. Take the convenience store, for example. They are almost always located at gas stations, but Tesla and other electric car owners don’t go to gas stations though.
Looking to capitalize on this emerging market, Tesla CTO J.B. Straubel has highlighted the company’s plan to add convenience stores to some of their existing and future Supercharger stations.
Recharging your electric car’s batteries takes considerably longer than filling up a tank of gas. Adding a small store with restrooms that also sells cold drinks and snacks is a great way to keep customers coming back. This way, Tesla customers can fill their stomachs while they fill up their cars. It’s essentially making a gas station minus the actual gasoline.
Struabel explained that “People are coming and spending 20 to 30 minutes at these stops” and that “they want to eat, they want to have a cup of coffee, and they want to use the bathroom.”
The company is right in the middle of a critical roll out for the Model 3; Tesla’s first mass-market car. With capital resources stretched tight, now might not be the best time to add a brand new food business line. To address these concerns, Straubel made it clear that Tesla wasn’t interested in entering the full service food market. Rather, they will work with restaurants and other vendors to start scaling up the project.