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I don't know why it took me this long to articulate this thought, but Tesla's charging model is ultimately a trap for themselves:
They rely on other folks to provide services near their charging sites. That's clever, BUT it means they do not make any money from those services.
And that's precisely what keeps gas stations in business. They compete with one another to such an extent that the fuel is sold barely above cost, and the store/car wash/cafe is where they /actually/ make money.
@TechConnectify Above cost enough that the oil companies make hundreds of billions – At least in the UK, forecourts are often run by the oil companies. But your point stands, Tesla doesn’t generate any of the energy it sells.
@mdonkin Are they actually run by those companies, or are they franchised?
Here in the US, the name on the pumps means very little. That's just who the owners are buying their gas from.
@TechConnectify Oh. I don’t know. Maybe. We also have some supermarkets that sell petrol, but I suspect that’s really more about getting customers in.