Electric Avenue

When it comes to Tesla’s showroom in Westfield Century City Center (Los Angeles), two factors set it apart from its peers: One, cars aren’t often featured in showrooms; and two, most showrooms aren’t limited to 892 square feet.

Working within a confined area, MBH Architects (Alameda, Calif.) designed a space that not only showcases a Model S electric Tesla, but also gives customers many interactive elements to explore – from finishes to aid in the personalization of your car to merchandise bearing the Tesla logo.

With small square footage came big challenges. First, an accordion-style glass façade opening to a width of 12 feet was installed in order to transport the car into the interior. Other considerations, such as space for employees, inspired angling the back walls inward to create more visual space.

“The fact that Tesla is building these showrooms is really not typical of a car company business model because you rarely see retail car showrooms,” says Reena Nadkarni, project manager and associate for MBH. “It does have its challenges being that there wasn’t a prototype to follow for this particular product.”

Highlights include a feature wall that wraps over the car and onto the ceiling and houses a plasma screen, while Tesla brand colors comprise the showroom palette. Fixtures and customer interaction points are wall-mounted, giving all allowable space to the floor surrounding the vehicle – just enough for customers to admire their potential future car.