“We want to ensure that the transition from online to offline is as seamless as possible,” said Frank Diertl, Mercedes-Benz USA vice president of retail network development.

The interior-focused redesign taps into another retail industry trend: Shopping is about more than a purchase.

“MB EVolution is a focus on the experience, not on the transaction,” Diertl said. “The product, and the experience of understanding that product, take center stage.”

Psillakis said MB EVolution will allow dealers to show products digitally in an immersive way.

“We’re moving away from the big stockyards for vehicles so we don’t need huge parking lots for products,” he said.

The days of dealerships stockpiling 120 days of inventory are over, agreed Jeff Aiosa, owner of Mercedes-Benz of New London in Connecticut.

“Thirty to 45 days of inventory is the new normal,” Aiosa said. “We’re shifting away from a push distribution system to a pull distribution system.”

About a quarter of the brand’s 383 dealerships are in various stages of making the interior-focused design overhaul.

“We would expect that every dealership would, latest by 2027, have the EVolution standard,” Diertl said.