Actually, it makes sense. Consider the people who can afford an EV right now. They are expensive for the average Joe to own.
But, and EV station where one doesn’t have to sit around in the hot sun/hot car or freeze in the winter while your vehicle charges.
This client avatar has disposable income. Higher end amenities and better dining options beyond gas station food or McD. Would that class of people do haircuts/manicures, probably not they have their preferred service providers for that. But, might they do a little boutique shopping? Yea, I could envision that. Better quality tourist traps. I think about Grandpa’s Cheesebarn off I-71 in Ohio, artisanal cheeses, wines etc. I think about some of the vendor carts I see at high-end malls with unique items translated to an EV rest area.
You, as a vendor or restaurant, will have a captive audience with the financial ability to afford things. Heck, even a cart (or golf cart) selling ice cold fancy waters would make a killing. Call me a crazy entrepreneur, but I can totally see this scene in my head right now.
WRT selling stuff at a charging station.
The challenge is how SLOWLY you can ‘turn a table’ so to speak.
Customer pulls in, connects charger, HAS to be there 30-75 minutes. Rate of incremental revenue is pretty slow — maybe 2 customers per breakfast/lunch hour per charging station.
*IF* I were a restaurant operator at a high-traffic charging stop, I would definitely find a way to have folks know I was there, serving them, and offered a spiff/incentive. Maybe even a loyalty program is I was along a commuter route.
A possible high-volume location is one near an apartment/ condo where the ‘city folk’ love their EVs, but there’s not enough chargers at the complex. Set up along their normal traffic patterns, capture them for 45 - 60 minutes in the AM. Even if you charge a big mark up on charging, like ChargePoint does, you’d get both ends of the deal - the merchandise and food service AND the electricity ‘up charge.’
Any time you can capture net income from the preening peacocks, catering to their sensitivities, it’s a good thing.
What the heck, you could even mount solar panels over the charging/parking areas and tout ‘green energy’ even though the power generated would be remarkably trivial. “Come buy your green electricity here while you drink you inclusive, responsibly grown and harvested latte extra shots - and use our high-speed Wi-Fi.”
It would work ;-)