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Five months after shopping, some Tesla customers are still waiting – not cars, but red satin shorts.
Sporting a gold Tesla logo, the “short shorts,” as they are branded, were envisioned by automaker founder Elon Musk as a way to mock investors who bet against the company’s stock.
The shorts sold out almost immediately when they were offered online in early July, but heading into Christmas some customers say they haven’t received them yet.
“Tesla can’t even deliver a pair of shorts in more than five months,” a client told the Financial Times. “What did they do with all this money?”
Several others who purchased the shorts in July said they received an email from Tesla a few weeks later indicating that due to high demand their order would be ready “in the fall of this year.” Some told the FT that they received another update in October indicating that deliveries would begin shortly.
People took to Twitter to ask Mr. Musk about their orders, while others expressed irritation on the Reddit forum site.
$ 562 billion
Tesla’s market valuation after six-fold increase in company shares this year
While the delay left customers frustrated, it doesn’t matter next to the pain suffered this year by those who have continued to bet against Tesla’s stock. The group’s shares have more than six-folded, bringing its market cap to $ 562 billion and turning it into an S&P 500 this month.
Although the company had problems meeting delivery targets, investors took encouragement this year of the group’s performance.
Tesla’s outspoken founder even used the price of shorts to taunt his detractors. The price tag of $ 69,420 is a nod to both cannabis cultivation – in 2018 Mr. Musk was pictured taking a drag on a joint during a podcast – and the price at which he sadly said he would take Tesla private.
Earlier this year, Mr Musk joked that he would send some of the shorts to the Shortseller Enrichment Commission, an apparent coup to the Securities and Exchange Commission, which in 2018 forced him to resign as president and pay a $ 20 million penalty for a tweet about obtaining financing to privatize the company.
Some who got the shorts are now selling them at a huge margin on auction sites such as Ebay.
A buyer who owns a Tesla but has yet to receive the shorts, said he ordered them as a “fun idea” and was not surprised at the delay.
“Each of these unique Tesla product offerings are instant collectibles and not at all essential to Tesla’s business, so that’s sort of expected,” they told the Financial Times.
This line of shorts isn’t the first time Mr. Musk has used the garment to rebuke Tesla skeptics. In 2018, he sent hedge fund manager David Einhorn, founder of Greenlight Capital and the automaker’s longtime bear, several pairs and then asked him to put them on and take a selfie.
Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.
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