Episode #1302: BYD sprints into Canada with big retail plans amid tight EV quotas, Sony and Honda hit pause on Afeela as EV reality sets in, and FedEx jumps into the same-day delivery fight as Amazon raises the bar yet again.

They’re here!!! Just months after Canada dramatically lowered tariffs on Chinese-built EVs, global EV giant BYD is targeting 20 branded dealerships in year one.

BYD has hired Dealer Solutions Mergers & Acquisitions to help secure branded Canadian dealerships, with 3 potential sites identified in the Greater Toronto Area.
After Toronto, BYD plans to expand into Vancouver, Montreal, and Calgary, building a coast-to-coast footprint in Canada’s biggest metro markets.
The move only became possible after Canada cut tariffs on Chinese-built EVs from 100% to 6.1%, though imports are capped at 49,000 units in year one.
That cap could make things tricky. With multiple Chery also working to build a dealer network and total supply limited, 20 rooftops may be a lot of retail for a tightly rationed pipeline.
BYD is aiming to win the race. As consultant Farid Ahmad put it: “They’ve asked us to help them find as many of the 20 that they possibly can, but they’re out there doing that themselves, as well.”

Sony and Honda’s Afeela EV project has hit a wall. The partners are scrapping their first two North American models and reassessing the joint venture—another sign that shifting EV demand is forcing even bold bets back to the drawing board.

Sony Honda Mobility is canceling both the Afeela 1 sedan and its planned crossover follow-up, despite production of the sedan already beginning in Ohio.
The cancellations tie back to a broader Honda pullback, driven by U.S. tariffs, slowing EV demand, weak traction in Asia, and up to $15.8 billion in expected charges.
Honda didn’t mince words, saying the partnership’s business assumptions were “fundamentally altered,” forcing both companies to rethink what comes next.

The delivery wars are heating up fast. FedEx is teaming up with last-mile tech company OneRail to launch same-day shipping—just days after Amazon doubled down on ultra-fast delivery, raising the stakes for retailers trying to keep up with rising consumer expectations.

FedEx’s new partnership with OneRail enables retailers to offer same-day delivery with options like two-hour windows and end-of-day service.
OneRail brings massive scale to the table, covering 99% of the U.S. with a network of 1,000+ carriers and 12 million drivers.
As OneRail CEO Bill Catania put it: “This is going to be priced extremely competitively… retailers [can] build a highly compelling value proposition to their customers.”

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