Tesla set to open second Czech dealership this month as sales surge

Electric carmaking giant Tesla is set to open its second full-fledged branch in Czechia later this month as it records a surge in sales inside the country. 

The new, 2,000-square-meter branch, opening July 15, will offer the sales, servicing, and delivery of most types of Tesla vehicles. It means that the east and south of the country will finally have a relatively nearby Tesla store to go to. The company says that the new Brno store will also attract customers from Slovakia, who up until now needed to rely on branches in Austria or Hungary.

From July, the Czech Republic will have the same number of Tesla branches as the much larger Poland, where Tesla Centrum operates in Warsaw and Katowice, as well as a pop-up center in Gdańsk. Czechia, too, has Tesla pop-up branches in Ostrava and Brno.

Tesla's expansion into Brno underlines its popularity among Czech consumers. The Czech Republic currently has one of the densest networks of Tesla fast charging stations in Central and Eastern Europe, along with a rapidly growing number of electric car sales. In the first half of this year alone, Tesla sold 1,713 cars, making it the top-selling electric car brand in the country.

The launch of a national subsidy program for people and companies in March – in which people can claim up to CZK 200,000 for purchasing an electric car – has further boosted the sales of electric cars in the Czech Republic. Over half of all vehicles purchased using the subsidy program are Teslas. 

The U.S. company also recently surpassed Dacia to become the sixth-best-selling car company in the country, and Tesla was Czechia’s best-selling premium car brand in June. Tesla cars are predominantly sold in larger cities in the Czech Republic – in June, over half of the 953 cars sold were registered in Prague, Brno, and the surrounding areas.

Although Tesla's Model Y was the best-selling car globally last year, it is not the best-seller in the Czech Republic. Instead, Czech customers prefer the more affordable Model 3. In June, the Model 3 secured a spot in the top ten best-selling cars, tying for ninth place with the Hyundai Tucson, various Škoda models, and the Hyundai i30. The country’s best-selling model is the Škoda Octavia.