GM's BrightDrop opens first dealership

BrightDrop, General Motors' electric delivery van brand, will open its first dealership Tuesday, run by Chevrolet-Buick-GMC dealer Mike Caposio in Southern California.

The dealership, called BrightDrop Greater Los Angeles, is located in Fontana, Calif., near Caposio's stores: Rotolo Chevrolet in Fontana and Caposio Buick-GMC in Victorville. Rotolo Chevy is the largest Chevrolet dealership in California and recipient of Chevy's 2020 Dealer of the Year award, BrightDrop said in a statement announcing the initial dealership Tuesday.

BrightDrop has signed agreements with FedEx Express and Merchants Fleet to provide its EV600 and EV410 midsize delivery vans. BrightDrop has also developed the EP1, a pallet designed to reduce package touch points, costs and physical strain on delivery drivers.

This year, FedEx Express has ordered at least 500 EV600s, and Merchants Fleet ordered 12,600 EV600s and 5,400 EV410s. Verizon also ordered an undisclosed number of EV410s. The vans will be built at GM's CAMI Assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ontario.

"BrightDrop aims to be a one-stop shop for our customers," Travis Katz, BrightDrop CEO, said in the statement. "End-to-end, we are providing solutions for nearly every aspect of the delivery journey and establishing our first dealership is a major piece of that puzzle. BrightDrop dealers will support fleet operators in their electrification journey, providing electric vehicle expertise and service."

In July, Scott Young, BrightDrop vice president of vehicle distribution, said retailers outside of GM's existing dealer network may run some of BrightDrop's locations, marking a shift from GM's traditional commercial strategy. GM dealers facilitate sales of the automaker's existing gasoline-powered commercial vehicles.

"What we are looking at is the very best of the commercial dealers out there," Young said in July.

BrightDrop said Tuesday that it plans to establish a small dealer network to serve fleet customers throughout the U.S.

Caposio and his team bring more than 150 years of automotive and commercial fleet experience to BrightDrop, according to the statement.

"We are honored to be selected as BrightDrop's first-ever dealership," Caposio said in the statement. "They have a world-class electric delivery van portfolio and share my focus on serving the fleet customer. I believe the era of all-electric fleets is here and I am committed to helping modernize America's delivery fleets."