The old mall anchor was a department store.
The new one has a charging port.
In February 2026, Rivian opened its first US showroom of the year at King of Prussia Mall, directly adjacent to Porsche and Tesla. In April, the company filed plans for a 40,000 square foot facility at Mall at Millenia in Orlando. Polestar grew its global retail network from 154 to 230 locations in twelve months, a 50% increase. Lucid operates studios across Simon, Macerich, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, and Swire Class A properties.
The mall tenant mix is gaining a new anchor class. Three signals showing where the leasing math is changing.
Signal 1 — EV-native brands are signing Class A mall leases at scale.
Rivian operates approximately 95 retail and service locations across North America, concentrated in California, Texas, Florida, and New York. Seventy percent of order holders are first-time EV buyers. The showroom does not close the sale. It explains the brand to customers who have never bought an electric car. The transaction completes online.
Polestar reported Q1 2026 retail sales of 13,126 vehicles, up 7% year over year. The retail network grew 50% in twelve months and targets 250 locations globally by the end of 2026. Lucid is in discussion with PIF on a Saudi Arabia factory that extends the same model into the GCC.
This is not dealership leasing. It is brand leasing, underwritten on the same logic that puts Apple inside Westfield and Hermès inside Bal Harbour.
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Signal 2 — The rent math looks more like Hermès than Honda.
Showroom. Photo JRM Construction West.
Location has moved. Legacy dealerships cluster along auto-mile corridors. EV-native brands target the same Class A malls as Louis Vuitton and Apple. King of Prussia hosts Rivian, Porsche, and Tesla inside one property. Scottsdale Fashion Square hosts Tesla, Lucid, and Polestar simultaneously. Westfield UTC houses Polestar alongside the mall's $70 million luxury expansion (Tom Ford, Saint Laurent, Zegna, Carolina Herrera) opening in spring 2026.
Lease structure has moved. Legacy dealerships sign 15 to 25 year ground leases on standalone buildings. EV-native brands sign 10-year inline mall leases with fixed rent. Tesla signed a 10-year deal with Urban Edge Properties in 2024, converting a former Bed Bath & Beyond box. Rivian showrooms run 3,000 to 5,000 square feet, with integrated service hubs extending to 40,000.
Co-tenancy has moved. Auto dealers treated adjacency as irrelevant. EV brands underwrite on it. Polestar selected Westfield UTC because the customer profile maps to luxury neighbors. Lucid chooses properties already anchored by Hermès, Louis Vuitton, or Chanel. The rent per square foot in these positions sits closer to Hermès than to Honda.
Signal 3 — Legacy automotive is starting to follow the format.
Tesla Showroom. Adobe.
The EV-native retail model has pulled legacy luxury automotive into the same category.
Porsche deployed its NOW experiential retail concept at Santana Row in Silicon Valley and Westfield Newmarket in Auckland. BMW announced Retail.NEXT across Europe with direct sales starting 2026. The model uses VR showrooms and agency-model transactions, bypassing dealer franchise economics.
When BMW signs a Class A mall lease directly with BMW AG rather than through a regional dealer franchise, the counterparty becomes investment-grade. Lease terms negotiate at corporate level. Covenants look like Apple or LVMH flagship leasing, not traditional automotive distribution.
None of the EV-native brands have opened in a Class B or Class C mall. The flight-to-quality that concentrated luxury apparel in top-tier Simon, Macerich, URW, and Swire portfolios is now concentrating automotive retail in the same assets.
What we're watching
→ VinFast US rollout. The Vietnamese EV brand tests direct-to-consumer showroom leases across California through 2025-2026.
→ NIO House format globally. 100+ houses across China combining showroom with cafe, co-working, and events, now expanding into Europe.
→ Xpeng European market entry. Dealer-model retail across eight European markets in 2025, on a different playbook from direct-to-consumer peers.
→ Cadillac Celestiq atelier concept. GM designing ultra-luxury retail ateliers in limited Class A locations for a six-figure flagship launch.
Car retail is not replacing the mall. It is rebuilding what an anchor means.
The old mall anchor formula was a 120,000 square foot department store on a declining 25-year lease with percentage rent and heavy promotional dependency. The new formula is a 3,000 to 5,000 square foot EV flagship signing a 10-year lease with fixed rent, luxury-adjacent co-tenancy, and brand-covenant credit.
Class A operators are selecting tenants from a category that does not appear in legacy leasing models and does not show up in traditional sales-per-square-foot tables.
Leasing teams still underwriting on apparel-retail frameworks are pricing the wrong asset class.
That is the shift. That is the signal.
Mati
Editor, Malls Money
Malls.com covers retail expansion across 50+ countries. We will be at Shoptalk Europe, June 9-11, Fira Gran Via, Barcelona.
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