Photo courtesy to Rivian website
Count it! Rivian is the beneficiary of a $350-million from Cox Automotive.
Rivian, the electric vehicle maker that operates out of the old Mitsubishi plant in Normal, said in a news release Cox’s involvement will focus on service, digital retailing, and logistics.
Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said his company wants to build an ownership experience that matches the care that goes into the vehicles themselves.
Cox is a $20 billion global company that owns Kelly Bluebook, Autotrader, transport and auction services, and other companies. With this deal, Cox will add a representative to Rivian’s board.
This is the third major investment this year in the startup electric automaker. Amazon and other investors put $700 million into Rivian in February. And in April Ford went public with a $500 million investment.
Rivian has maintained it would like to remain an independent company but is forming partnerships based on expertise and investor desire to use the Rivian “skateboard” platform that includes a chassis and battery assembly.
Rivian plans to put out two models of electric vehicle on the market in late 2020.
