The first Tesla store is finally opening in EV-loving Vermont [update]

New Englanders, rejoice – at last, Vermont’s first Tesla store is being fitted up in South Burlington and will open soon.

January 26: The Vermont Tesla store is so not going to open in the latter half of January, as we initially expected. One of our readers (thanks, Doug!) went past the store today and spoke to a supervisor, who said there was still a lot of work to do and that the store wouldn’t open until March 1 at the earliest. He took a photo of the store’s interior and shared it with us:

Yeah, that is nowhere near being ready for launch in four days, lol.

Vermont’s first (and only) Tesla store

December 22: Up until now, Vermont’s approximately 3,000 Tesla drivers have had to travel to Latham, New York, for service and repairs. If you wanted to buy or lease a new Tesla, you’d have to go all the way to New Jersey to pick it up – if you wanted to order to avoid the hefty delivery charge. Both Tesla stores are a few hours’ drive each way from Vermont. (Tesla also offers mobile service to Vermont residents, but the traveling technicians can’t provide the same full service as in the shop.)

But now it’s official: A former Hannaford Supermarket now has a large Tesla sign across the front. The South Burlington store is expected to open in the latter half of January.

Vermont state law was revised in 2021 to allow direct sales of EVs to customers, and South Burlington made a zoning change to allow car sales at the former supermarket site.

Tesla just opened a store at Mohegan Sun, a casino and resort in Connecticut. The move was made because the Mohegan Tribe owns the land, which serves as a workaround because the state bans direct car sales by car makers. (The state does, however, allow direct leasing.)

There aren’t any Tesla stores in New Hampshire, so the state’s residents will also benefit from this development.

Electrek’s Take

This is extremely welcome news for a lot of people (not just me, lol). The state has a small population, but per capita, it’s in the top 5 in the country for EV drivers. Drive Electric Vermont reported in July that there were 10,022 plug-in electric vehicles registered in Vermont – a 34% jump over 2022.

And Chittenden County, where South Burlington is, has the highest rate of EV ownership, with about 1 EV for every 47 people.

Having a Tesla store in the state will only boost those numbers, as it will attract new buyers. And, of course, there are those of us who are cheering its arrival because we won’t have to drive out of state anymore.

Read more: I just bought my very first Tesla. Here’s what happened

Photo: Todd R. Lockwood/New England Electric Auto Association Group

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