By Michael Elkins
According to a report by Reuters, citing people familiar with the matter, Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has closed the company’s flagship showroom in Beijing, China. The Beijing showroom was in Parkview Green, an upscale downtown shopping center. A member of the mall's staff confirmed to Reuters during a visit to the site on Wednesday that Tesla had shut the showroom.
"Their contract with us expired and Tesla decided not to extend it," the mall staff member said.
The Beijing store, opened in 2013, was Tesla's first showroom in China. It was renovated in 2018 and expanded to occupy two floors of the mall. Tesla currently owns and operates over 200 outlets across the country that display models and arrange test drives for potential buyers. However, in September it was reported that the company was considering closing some showrooms after traffic plunged during COVID restrictions.
The company is also planning to highlight locations in in less-costly suburban areas that can provide repairs as the company works to improve service for customers. As part of that effort, Tesla has been hiring technicians and other staff for service jobs in China. The company's China recruitment website showed 305 openings for service jobs as of Wednesday.
Tesla sold 318,151 vehicles in China in the first nine months of 2022, up 55% from a year earlier, according to the China Passenger Car Association. Prices for the company’s Model 3 and Model Y cars have been cut by as much as 9% in China amid signs of softening demand.
Shares of TSLA are down 0.03% in pre-market trading on Wednesday.