EXCLUSIVE!
The Apple Store of car dealerships is coming to Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda.
Tesla will open a high-tech showroom in the former Crate and Barrel space there this fall.
Much like the Apple store, Tesla showrooms are designed to promote the brand and engage the public as much as they are to sell products.
But the Apple-Tesla connection is even more direct than that: the Tesla showrooms are designed by George Blankenship, the man behind the design and success of the Apple Store concept itself.
Like the Apple Store, Tesla showrooms feature an inviting, glass exterior.
Mall shoppers will ostensibly be lured in by the sleek Model S in the window. Inside, they can design their custom version of the $50,000+ all-electric sedan, which goes 0-60 in less than 5 seconds. The finished creation will be shown on an 85" screen.
But there will be no hard sell. Tesla has repeatedly said the showrooms are not designed to sell, but to excite customers about the brand, and electric vehicles in general.
Tesla was rumored to be opening such a showroom at Bethesda Row last year, as there is one at Federal Realty's sister property - Santana Row - in California.
There is a Tesla service center in Rockville. Several other Westfield malls have added Tesla as a tenant over the last year.
While the future of Tesla seems to be a constant source of debate, the combination of wealth and interest in "green" technology makes Bethesda an ideal market for any EV manufacturer.
I see a lot of Teslas driving around Bethesda so no surprise they are opening a showroom here.
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