Audi Repair Shop Doylestown
Call 267 279 9477 to schedule a appointment
CEO
sent an all-employee email on Wednesday in which he sought to clarify the company’s whipsawing on the fate of its physical retail stores and moving sales online. Whether his message hits the target and helps
reportedly flagging employee morale remains to be seen. In the email, Musk discusses the job security of sales associates and adds the kicker that “sometimes, in a company with 45,000 people, things happen that make no sense.”
Late last month,
said it would
close most of its retail locations
and shift to an all-online sales model as part of a larger announcement about finally making the
available at its long-promised entry price of $35,000. Then, less than two weeks later, it did a 180 and said it would
keep more of its brick-and-mortar stores open than planned
and would also hike prices on its high-end vehicles. The company hasn’t detailed which stores would close or remain open.
In his Wednesday email to staff, which was
, Musk explained that all purchases of Teslas are made via a phone or computer, whether the customer is at home or in a store, noting that Tesla doesn’t require any “physical paperwork” to
. But he acknowledged that many customers want to be able to speak to a Tesla sales representative or test drive a vehicle. “Stores also have a small number of Tesla vehicles available to drive away immediately for customers that want a car right then and there.”
Regarding physical retail stores, we quote directly from Musk’s email:
- Stores with a high visitation rate and that lead to significant sales will absolutely not be closed down. It would not make any sense to do so, except in rare cases where the rent is absurdly high. Moreover, Tesla will continue to open stores throughout the world that meet the above criteria.
- Stores that are in a location with low visitation rates (ie empty most of their opening hours) and lead to low sales will gradually be closed down. This is analogous to seeds on barren ground. There is no reasonable way to justify keeping such stores open.
- Stores that are somewhere in the middle will be evaluated over time to see there is some way to allow them to cover their costs. If there is, they will remain open, otherwise not. However, these stores will be given a fair opportunity to prove their case.
He added that those principles “also apply to the sales team. No one who is a major contributor to demand generation will be let go. That would make no sense. However, sometimes in a company with 45,000 people, things happen that make no sense.”
Clear?
Business Insider previously reported
that the initial announcement about store closures had blindsided store employees and badly damaged morale. The company has reportedly slashed the pay of retail employees, fired others and told some employees to
call clients and reschedule test drives and appointments
to other locations as it started closing down showrooms.
Meanwhile, multiple reports and various Tesla web forums suggest the company has yet to start shipping any examples of the Standard Range
, which is what it calls the $35,000 version, four weeks after the company said customers could expect delivery in two to four weeks. Some customers have reported receiving texts from the company telling them that their deliveries are being delayed, with no new delivery dates offered. Tesla hasn’t commented about the issue.
from Autoblog https://ift.tt/2TInN7j