{"id":7993,"date":"2016-11-01T20:44:02","date_gmt":"2016-11-02T00:44:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digital.hbs.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/tesla-on-the-road-from-aspirational-luxury-to-the-mass-market\/"},"modified":"2016-11-01T20:44:02","modified_gmt":"2016-11-02T00:44:02","slug":"tesla-on-the-road-from-aspirational-luxury-to-the-mass-market","status":"publish","type":"hck-submission","link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/submission\/tesla-on-the-road-from-aspirational-luxury-to-the-mass-market\/","title":{"rendered":"Tesla: On the Road from Aspirational Luxury to the Mass Market"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>While climate change presents a risk to most companies, it provides an opportunity for others. Tesla, the electric car manufacturer, is a prime example of a company that has taken advantage of regulation designed to curb global warming in its efforts to disrupt the auto industry. Not only does it receive government subsidies, it is also profits from selling regulatory emissions credits to conventional car manufacturers [1]. Transportation accounts for 21% of greenhouse gas emissions globally, second only to electricity and heat production [2]. Any attempt to reduce emissions must reduce or eliminate the amount of gas required to fuel vehicles. While Tesla successfully pioneered the commercialization of electric vehicles in the United States, its largest challenge lies ahead: the ability of Tesla to scale its operations to accommodate a mass market offering will determine its true impact in the fight against climate change.<\/p>\n<p>Tesla made its market debut with the Roadster in 2008, an electric sports car with a whopping $100,000 price tag, and followed up with the Model S sedan priced at $70,000 [3] [4]. Through a sleek design and aspirational price point, Tesla deftly positioned its electric car as a luxury item to be coveted. Now that consumer demand has been proven, Tesla plans to bring a more affordable $35,000 option to market. According to company projections, Tesla hopes to produce 500,000 vehicles in 2018, compared to just 50,000 today [5]. Tesla has already made great strides towards making this goal technologically, operationally, and economically feasible.<\/p>\n<p><strong><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Tesla Unveils Model 3\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Q4VGQPk2Dl8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Firstly, to meet greater demand at a lower price point, Tesla is investing to lower production costs. The Gigafactory, a lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant, is a key part of this initiative. Projected to be 10 million square feet at completion, the Gigafactory will be able to produce \u201cmore lithium-ion batteries each year than were produced globally in all of 2013\u201d [6]. According to Elon Musk, Tesla\u2019s CEO, \u201cYou can\u2019t change the world with tiny factories that move slowly. We need big factories with high-velocity output\u201d [6].<\/p>\n<p>Secondly, because electric cars can only travel ~200 miles between charges [6], Tesla has been focused on increasing charging infrastructure across the world. The company currently has 584 \u201cSupercharger\u201d stations across the globe that charge a car 80% in 40 minutes and partners with hotels and other destinations to provide ~3,100 more charging options [1] [4]. Tesla also recently announced a merger with SolarCity, a provider of rooftop solar panels, that will aid its efforts to install high capacity, solar-powered charging stations in people\u2019s homes [7].<\/p>\n<p>Tesla still has a lot of ground to cover if it wants to become a mass market brand with the potential to truly make a dent in the fight against climate change. First of all, Tesla should consider altering its distribution model. It currently eschews franchised dealers in favor of selling cars directly to consumers. Customers can view Tesla models at show rooms in high end shopping malls but must currently place all orders online [4]. Once Tesla changes its target market, it must expand its distribution footprint beyond the most affluent neighborhoods. Selling through franchised dealers like traditional auto OEM\u2019s do will be a less capital intensive and potentially quicker way to expand sales.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/11\/ti_graphics_tesla-gigafactory.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-7996\" src=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/11\/ti_graphics_tesla-gigafactory-268x300.png\" alt=\"ti_graphics_tesla-gigafactory\" width=\"268\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/11\/ti_graphics_tesla-gigafactory-268x300.png 268w, https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/11\/ti_graphics_tesla-gigafactory-768x859.png 768w, https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/11\/ti_graphics_tesla-gigafactory-916x1024.png 916w, https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/11\/ti_graphics_tesla-gigafactory-537x600.png 537w, https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/11\/ti_graphics_tesla-gigafactory.png 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 268px) 100vw, 268px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Secondly, Tesla needs to continue to innovate and drive manufacturing costs down. While half the price of the previous model, the $35,000 Model S is still unaffordable to a broad swath of U.S. consumers. Tesla must find a way to cut the price in half again in order to capture this segment of the market. One way Tesla could do this is to vertically integrate its supply chain to bring more stages of battery production in house as opposed to buying from suppliers in Japan.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, Tesla needs to continue to improve the charging infrastructure of the United States to meet the increased number of electric vehicles on the road. While there are 100,000 public charging points in the United States, they take three to four hours to charge a car fully. This inconvenience will be a physiological barrier to many consumers when deciding whether to purchase an electric car. Tesla should expand its exclusive \u201cSupercharger\u201d stations quickly in order to meet projected demand.<\/p>\n<p>In Tesla\u2019s most recent quarterly earning\u2019s release, it announced a profit for the first time three years [8]. Tesla\u2019s investors have high hopes for the company, which is currently trading at almost $30 billion [9], but only time will tell if Tesla is able to generate a sustainable profit and scale its operations to successfully commercialize a mass market product. (771 words)<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Sources:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>[1] Tesla Motor\u2019s 10-K Earnings Release (12\/31\/15), Thomson Reuters\/Thomson ONE, accessed 11\/2016.<\/p>\n<p>[2] Rebecca M. Henderson, Sophus A. Reinert, Polina Dekhtyar, and Amram Migdal, \u201cClimate Change in 2016: Implications for Business,\u201d HBS No. N2-317-032 (Boston: 性视界 Business School Publishing, 2016), p. 2.<\/p>\n<p>[3] Slate, \u201cTesla, Elon Musk, and Climate Change,\u201d http:\/\/www.slate.com\/blogs\/bad_astronomy\/2016\/04\/02\/elon_musk_reveals_new_electric_car_calling_climate_change_his_motivation.html, accessed November 2016.<\/p>\n<p>[4] Meier, P. (2015). AN APPLE ON FOUR WHEELS. Motor Age, 134(1), 38-38,40,42. Retrieved from http:\/\/search.proquest.com.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu\/docview\/1645735819?accountid=11311.<\/p>\n<p>[5] Sweet, C., &amp; Higgins, T. (2016, Oct 29). Tesla CEO elon musk aims to make solar panels as appealing as electric cars. Wall Street Journal (Online) Retrieved from http:\/\/search.proquest.com.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu\/docview\/1833195456?accountid=11311.<\/p>\n<p>[6] New York Times, \u201cElon Musk of Tesla Sticks to Mission Despite Setbacks,\u201d http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/07\/25\/business\/despite-roadblocks-for-tesla-elon-musk-is-moving-full-speed-ahead.html?_r=1, accessed November 2016.<\/p>\n<p>[7] SF Gate, \u201cTesting the clean-energy logic of a Tesla-SolarCity merger,\u201d http:\/\/www.sfgate.com\/business\/article\/Testing-the-clean-energy-logic-of-a-8321776.php, accessed November 2016.<\/p>\n<p>[8] Higgins, T. (2016, Oct 27). Tesla generates a profit; electric-car maker&#8217;s deliveries more than double ahead of vote on SolarCity merger. Wall Street Journal (Online) Retrieved from http:\/\/search.proquest.com.ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu\/docview\/1832371254?accountid=11311.<\/p>\n<p>[9] Yahoo Finance, \u201cTesla Motors,\u201d https:\/\/finance.yahoo.com\/quote\/tsla?ltr=1, accessed November 2016.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Exhibit Sources<\/strong> (in order of appearance)<\/p>\n<p>Cover Photo: \u00a0Tesla, https:\/\/www.tesla.com\/, accessed November 2016.<\/p>\n<p>Video: Tesla, \u201cTesla Unveils Model3,\u201d YouTube, published March 31, 2016, https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Q4VGQPk2Dl8, accessed November 2016.<\/p>\n<p>Body Image: Business Insider, \u201cTesla has to overcome a major problem for its massive new Gigafactory to succeed,\u201d http:\/\/www.businessinsider.com\/tesla-has-to-overcome-a-major-problem-for-its-massive-new-gigafactory-to-succeed-2016-7, accessed November 2016.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tesla&#039;s ability to scale operations and produce a mass market offering will determine its true impact on the fight against climate change.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2483,"featured_media":7994,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[1218,96,1246,1247,1248,128],"class_list":["post-7993","hck-submission","type-hck-submission","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate-change","category-elon-musk","category-model-3","category-model-s","category-roadster","category-tesla"],"connected_submission_link":"https:\/\/d3.harvard.edu\/platform-rctom\/assignment\/climate-change-challenge-2016\/","yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - 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