Rivian
- EV startups could lose customers while they make people wait.
- Without dealers, startups are learning new lessons in customer service.
- While startups ramp up production, legacy companies could benefit.
Philip Pao placed an order for a Rivian R1T in November 2019. After waiting for three years, he decided it was time to make a backup plan.
He placed an order on a gas-powered Toyota pickup truck, and now it's a race to see who will deliver to him in Fairfax, Virginia first. (Rivian is likely to lose. The company says it can't give him a delivery window until April.)
"At this point I've pretty much made up my mind," Pao said, "I'm just going to cancel my Rivian order."