Victoria, British Columbia — Canadian electric-vehicle startup ElectraMeccanica says it will open six U.S. retail outlets before the end of November.
The stores will open in the following cities: San Diego, Calif.; Santa Clara, Calif.; Walnut Creek, Calif.; Brea, Calif.; Scottsdale Ariz., and Glendale, Ariz.
ElectraMeccanica says the Scottsdale store will be a seasonal one.
All six locations are set to open by Thanksgiving, are in popular shopping centres, and “will be strategically positioned in high-visibility areas alongside notable name0brand anchor stores,” according to the automaker.
The EV startup located in Vancouver, B.C., builds and sells the three-wheeled, all-electric commuter vehicle, designed specifically for urban settings, with four established U.S. locations on the west coast.
ElectraMeccanica, along with its manufacturing partner and strategic investor Zongshen Industrial Group, began production of the Solo EV in China during late August.
The SOLO EV features a 160 km and can cruise at highway speeds and can charge on regular household (100V) sockets in fewer than six hours, according to the automaker.
ElectraMeccanica said Thursday that the initial shipment of its production vehicles has arrived in North America, and has been designated for corporate use in marketing, advertising, and retail.
They have also used vehicles from their first batch of EVs to test the international shopping logistics and port processing.
“We are continuing with our planned, methodical ramp-up in production to ensure quality and consistency,” CEO of ElectraMeccanica Paul Rivera said. “While we have encountered certain hurdles through this growth process, our team is hard at work making select supply chain and technical improvements.”
The single-seat EV starts at $18,500 in the United States. It has been in development for about five years and undergone steady refinement as it approached commercial production.
