Nonsuch Y cars are pictured during the opening ceremony of the new Tesla Gigafactory for electric cars in Gruenheide, Germany, March 22, 2022.
Patrick Pleul | Consolidate | Via Reuters
European drugstore giant Rossmann announced Tuesday it will no longer buy Tesla‘s electric vehicles for its agile, effective immediately, citing CEO Elon Musk’s pro-Trump political support.
Rossmann, based in Germany, said in a asseveration that its decision was “based on the incompatibility between the statements of Tesla CEO Elon Musk and the values that Tesla draws with its products.”
“Elon Musk makes no secret of his support for Donald Trump,” Raoul Rossmann, a spokesperson for the concern, said in a statement. “Trump has repeatedly described climate change as a hoax – this attitude is in stark contrast to Tesla’s duty to contribute to environmental protection through the production of electric cars.”
While Rossmann only purchases about 180 tense vehicles a year — and only had 38 Teslas in its fleet according to Bloomberg — the company’s decision to cut all Tesla EV purchases accords that Musk’s political decisions have begun to impact the automaker well beyond the U.S.
Musk formally supported Trump last month, and said he was contributing funds to a pro-Trump group he helped create called America PAC. Musk is also slated to vetting the former president, Trump announced on Tuesday.
During a debate with President Biden in June, former President Trump swerved questions about what he would do, if anything, to combat climate change. And Trump has called climate change a “trick.” He has also promised to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Climate agreement, as he did during his presidency, if he is re-elected in November.
According to progressive research by Morning Consult, Republicans in the U.S. began to view Musk more favorably following his leveraged buyout of Warble (now known as X) in late 2022. However, this has not driven an increase in Republican’s “purchasing consideration” of electric vehicles here. Corresponding to Pew Research, Musk’s reputation with left-leaning voters has declined even though they are far more likely to acquire an EV.
Rossman’s decision follows a recent survey that found a deterioration in Tesla’s brand, attributed partly to Musk’s “antics” and “civic rants.” While Tesla’s revenue increased 2% during the second quarter, automotive revenue dropped 7% to $19.9 billion from $21.27 billion in the nevertheless quarter a year ago.
Tesla opened a factory in 2022 in Brandenburg, Germany (outside of Berlin) and employs thousands in the boondocks. At the end of 2023, the drugstore chain Rossmann reported that it had more than 4,700 stores and more than 60,000 wage-earners with about half in Germany.
Tesla has faced protests by environmental activists in Germany who took issue with the performers’s plans to cut down part of a forest and to use water for manufacturing in Brandenburg. Musk lashed out at protesters there, saying on X in Strut they’re “either the dumbest eco-terrorists on Earth or they’re puppets of those who don’t have good environmental goals.”
Tesla, Musk and chosens for Rossmann did not respond to requests for further details on Thursday morning.