If Tesla has its way car shopping could be as easy as going online and ordering a new computer from Apple no matter where you live. A new White House Petition closed last week with over 112,000 signatures, moving the company one step closer to selling the Tesla Model S direct to consumers. White House staffers are required to issue a response to petitions posted to its website that garner at least 100,000 signatures.
Tesla wants consumers to be able to freely buy their cars directly rather than having to go through a dealer. . Laws in many states prevent direct sales of cars from manufacturers to consumers. The laws are in place to keep competition in place, but not everyone feels these laws should be on the books. Tesla wants the right to sell the Tesla Model S directly to consumers to maintain control of the retail experience, similar to how Apple tried to control the retail experience in Apple Stores.
Elon Musk, founder of Tesla, is waging a battle against these laws in many states. Musk describes the battle for direct sales as “life or death,” in a recent interview.
The White House petition doesn’t guarantee results, but Tesla stock [TSLA] rose on news the petition was nearing the goal and on support from Virgin Mobile CEO Richard Branson.
There is no response from the White House yet, but a successful petition should generate a statement and see the details passed to the appropriate channels.
In the end this show of support could help Tesla avoid the dealer model and offer the Tesla Model S directly to consumers via the web and Tesla-owned stores.