Rivian Reinvents The Auto Retail 'Space,' Adds An Adventure Test Drive
Rivian Space in NYC's Meatpacking District
Reinventing the car dealership showroom has been the goal of car makers for ages, transitioning cold, cavernous spaces into warm and welcoming ones, but as much as they try, success is elusive.
Rivian, though, may have figured it out.
Recently the electric car maker opened its first reimagined retail space in New York City's Meatpacking District, transforming a street-level space into a boutique with the feel of a reading room and a play space, for kids and adults alike. Buyers can shop for a car, immerse in the Rivian lifestyle or just browse the brand and become more familiar with it.
There's room to lounge and relax at Rivian Space NYC
Rivian brought a new approach to the showroom idea from the very beginning, starting with its flagship space in Venice, California, as well a repurposing a theater in Laguna Beach, California and a gas station near Yosemite.
Originally, Rivian showrooms, with the R1S and R1T center stage, allowed customers to explore the vehicles, accessories, merchandise and related lifestyle elements in a leisurely way.
While they were novel, with events like weekly gardening classes for kids and a decor that felt more like a boutique hotel than a car dealership, the company felt the concept could better embrace their core values, including adventure, environmental responsibility and a commitment to helping its owners to explore the world.
So the company took a new approach to how its spaces would embody that mission and redesigned a new flagship, the Rivian Space NYC.
Cars, and car parts, mingle with materials and poeple at Rivian Space
Coffee, of course, is at the heart of almost any space these days; it adds the human element of hospitality by offering something that is prepared just for you and delivered eye-to-eye, connecting server to recipient. The process of having coffee allows us to relax, open up and become involved in the place where we have coffee.
That's part of the Rivian Space mission. The space where guests can sit and have coffee (or tea) is also designed to forward the Rivian mission of connecting guests to the greater world beyond: curated books fill its browsing library and cover coffee tables. Materials from those places, and materials that fill Rivian's vehicles, are tucked on shelves and decorate tables. Videos entertain and educate about EV driving, technology and off-roading.
The New York Rivian Space features a reading and video space for relaxing and learning
Craft and play spaces allow kids to have fun and learn while adults do their thing—car shopping or just indulging in the Rivian environment. But the space for kids is more intentional than simply offering a distraction while parents shop. The idea was to create a collaborative space for car shoppers—especially those who shop, drive and travel as a group: families.
Rivain 'sought a collective experience' to car shopping, said Denise Cherry, vice president of marketing. 'It's not a pair of socks; it's a decision that you want to bring people into the fold, you want to bring your kids and let them climb into the back seat and see how it feels. We wanted to create spaces that allow for that, a collective experience,' Cherry told a gathering at the Laguna College of Art and Design.
The result of that thinking starts with vehicles that are open for everyone to explore, as well as a reading room ideal for kids, play spaces that allow them to create, and an environment that encourages exploration.
The Rivian lifestyle is on display at Rivian Space NYC
In the reading room and on tables throughout the space visitors will find coffee table books, travel guides and information on local and regional destinations, all curated for each Rivian Space location. The idea, which is core to the Rivian ethos, is designed to inspire owners to explore the world beyond, to embrace it and to preserve it.
This is what 'our vehicle enables you to do,' Cherry explained. 'We are just an opportunity for you to get out into the world and fall in love' with the natural spaces beyond. In addition to books and guides intended to inspire those journeys, Rivian Space is filled with experts, videos and information on making those trips happen in an EV, from how and where to charge to trip planing, itineraries with embedded charge stops and insights into Rivian's proprietary charge network, which is focused on parks and popular outdoor destinations.
The interior of a Rivian vehicle frames the view of NYC
To get a true taste of the Rivian experience, guests can sign up for a test drive that is more like a mini-adventure. Taking the better part of a morning or afternoon, Rivian guests and experts will caravan to a nearby outdoor destination; 'adventure drives' from the Meatpacking District location take guests to the Cloisters in Upper Manhattan or Storm King Art Center in Orange County, NY.
The idea is to get the full feel of driving a Rivian R1T or R1S, through the city and into nature, to develop confidence driving an electric car and to experience how Rivian frames the world a bit differently.
The Rivian Space mixes merchandise, materials and cars
Keeping the momentum going once a buyer has made a purchase has also long been a challenge for car dealerships. Rivian's approach to retail extends the relationship into the post-purchase phase with merchandise, accessories, classes, speaker series and more in the Rivian Space.
Buyers can explore new accessories for off-roading, or simply find branded gifts like shirts and hats for Rivian owners. Through panel discussions and events everyone can learn more about local destinations, sustainability efforts or simply, get up to speed on new innovations from Rivian's engineers.
Keeping customers in the Rivian ecosystem is the goal for the company, but so is turning the Rivian ethos into a community, something that practically no car buyer says, ever, about a car buying experience.
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