First dealer of its kind in North America
Store designed to reduce impact, cope with changing climate
Volvo has just announced the opening of its first sustainable dealership in Canada. The new store was opened by the Dilawri Group and is located in Richmond, BC.
Volvo calls the new program the Volvo Retail Sustainable Experience (VRSE) and it is part of the automaker’s overarching plan to reduce its environmental impact from raw materials to finished product and end-of-life. Volvo Cars Richmond (formerly Volvo of Vancouver) is the first store in North America built to VRSE standards.
“We could not be more pleased to have opened North America’s first Volvo Retail Sustainable Experience facility,” said Ajay Dilawri, Dilawri Co-founder. “At every stage, we met or exceeded provincial standards for environmental sustainability, and have built a store that reflects our ongoing commitment to deliver unparalleled customer satisfaction through continuous innovation.”
The customer experience should largely be the same. There is a sales side with a six-vehicle showroom, nine service bays, and two wash bays. But customers will be sitting on furniture made from recycled non-toxic materials and will get their coffee and water without single-use plastics.
Dilawri built the showroom to meet LEED certification. It features rooftop solar panels and is powered by renewable energy. Sustainable building materials were used, insulated curtain wall panels were installed, and the lot uses permeable pavers to help manage stormwater runoff.
Volvo said that the VRSE approach is meant to “make it as easy as possible to choose to invest in and create sites that are able to handle changing weather, while lowering energy costs.” A similar effort to what it has undergone in its vehicles, sourcing lower-emission steel and other materials and using more recycled, recyclable, and reclaimed materials for vehicle components.
