When people talk to me about how cool my Tesla is, and then ask me: "Is there a dealership somewhere where I can check them out?" I suppose I could whip out charts and graphs and reasoned point form expositions about how Tesla is NOT a dealership structure... or I can simply say: Yeah, they have a nice place in Toronto on Lawrence Avenue East."
It is a place where I can see various Tesla models on display. I can talk to Tesla employees about the vehicles, and they will run through every step of the order process with me there at that location. When the vehicle arrives, I pick it up at that location, and they run through the various aspects of the vehicle's operation with me before I leave the lot. If I have an issue, I take it back to that location to have the issue fixed, and it is the location where the annual service inspections are done. I don't really care if the person who helped me place my order receives a commission or salary or hourly wage. I understand how the Tesla marketing model differs significantly from those of other vehicle distribution companies (and it continues to impress the hell out of me), but by every visible measurement, the Lawrence Avenue location fits the conventional image of a dealership.
For better or worse, words can have broader meanings than some are comfortable with. Kleenex is a name brand that is now used generically to describe a broad array of tissues that are used for a variety of purposes. 'Football' is a generic term used variously to cover the NFL, CFL and in 90% of the world, soccer. If you don't want to call the Toronto location a dealership, then fine. For me, there are much bigger nits to pick, and I'll save my energy for those.