Tesla has met its match with one rising brand. Polestar is one of the new kids on the block for EVs, but it’s giving Elon Musk a run for his money. According to Polestar‘s press release, the company has big plans for this year regarding physical shops that could prove to be a gamble worth taking. What does the brand offer the EV community, and what does Polestar have up its sleeve?

Polestar’s Accomplishments in the industry

Polestar currently has two models available for purchase. The Polestar 1 has been out for about four years now, and it has a hybrid powertrain. This sedan comes with three electric motors, two of which power each rear wheel individually. The third sits between the gearbox and the crankshaft to generate more torque. Paired with them is a front-mounted combustible engine. The sedan offers a combined output of 619 horsepower and 738 lb-ft of torque. 

The Polestar 2 is its luxury sedan that is an all-electric model. Debuting in 2020, this vehicle comes with two motors that enable it to produce a total of 408 horsepower and 487 lb-ft of torque. It also offers forged alloy wheels and a four-piston Brembo brake system.

Later in 2021, a model is expected to debut that will offer a single motor generating 231 horsepower, which will help offset the price. 

When it comes to awards, the Polestar 2 has already brought two to the brand. One is from Good Housekeeping, which listed it as the Best Electric Luxury Sedan for 2021, beating out the Tesla Model 3. According to Polestar‘s website, the second award was for being the Best All-Rounder from Top Gear Magazine. 

Polestar will be busy increasing its retail shops

The Polestar brand will be keeping busy this year by opening up approximately 40 new stores by the time 2022 rolls around. So far, it seems to be on track, with 16 locations already opened and receiving consumers in the United States. 

While the company currently owns shops on three continents, including the U.S within North America, it plans to open up even more on American soil soon.  So far, you can test drive one of its models in Boston, San Francisco, Minneapolis, New York, Austin, and Los Angeles. Coming soon, there will be shops located in Orange County, California, Grapevine, Texas, Charlotte, North Carolina, and the Central New Jersey area. 

The company expects that there will be a total of 25 U.S. retail stores opened and ready for business by the end of 2021. That’s not hard to believe since the automaker is already around 60 percent of the way there, and there’s still a few months left of this year.

Will the increased retail locations be enough?

It’s hard to beat the Tesla brand regarding electric vehicles, especially when the company is relatively unknown to the market. Polestar released its first EV in 2017, so it’s so far garnered some attention with both of its first and second models. Now that Polestar has announced a third model, an SUV this time, the automaker is gaining some ground. 

Tesla has had almost a couple of decades to learn and grow from all of its mistakes, so it does have a leg up on the competition. Polestar, however, has had the luxury of watching what worked for Elon Musk and what didn’t. This gives the Swedish car brand a chance to apply improvements to what it learned before sending it out into the market to be sold. 

Will the increase in retail spaces help increase sales? More than likely it will, but it also helps that Polestar offers pickup and delivery for those who live within 150 miles of one of its stores. For those that live too far outside of that circle, the automaker offers a mobile service program that allows a technician to come to you to service your vehicle. That alone should grab a few customers’ attention. 

Polestar is well on its way to meeting the goals it set for opening up several retail stores by the end of the year. So far, 16 locations have been set up, and at least 25 more should be up and running by the end of 2021.