ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- Gas stations make the bulk of their money selling food and drinks, earning little to nothing at the pump. "With the wait time to charge a Tesla vehicle equal to about the time it takes to eat a meal, a mutually beneficial opportunity exists for Tesla to partner with TravelCenters of America and/or CST Brands," according to a posting on The Motley Fool website.
Electric-vehicle maker Tesla Motors is setting up charging stations. On average, it takes anywhere from 20 minutes to 75 minutes for a drivers to charge a Tesla battery, the report said. Tesla plans to open stations that connect 80% of the U.S. population in 2014 and 98% by 2015. It plays up the charging wait on its website: "Superchargers are located near amenities like roadside diners, cafes and shopping centers. Road trippers can stop for a quick meal and have their Model S charged when they're done."
Instead of figuring out the best places to set up new stations from scratch, the article asks, why doesn't Tesla simply partner with the rest stop experts who already did most of the legwork for them? Tesla would benefit by having its stations in already established, proven and familiar locations that have a variety places to eat and are already see heavy traffic. The heavily populated aspect of current rest stops allows Tesla the additional bonus of free marketing to the gasoline-car customers at the stations.
TravelCenters of America and CST Brands would benefit in the most obvious of ways. First, the average gasoline consumer fills up his tank in three minutes, compared to 20 to 75 minutes for a Tesla charge. It's far more tempting to grab a snack, or even an entire meal, when you have that additional time to kill.
Westlake, Ohio-based TravelCenters of America and San Antonio-based CST Brands could see dramatic rises in net profit with just tiny increases in food sales. They should be looking to partner with Tesla, and Tesla should be looking to partner with one or both of them.
Click here to read the full article at Fool.com.
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