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Several German businesses such as energy supplier Badenova, house construction company Viebrock, and drugstore chain Rossmann have expressed their intention to steer clear of new Tesla vehicles over Elon Musk’s actions and statements.
Swearing off Tesla:
- Badenova board member Hans-Martin Hellebrand criticized Elon Musk’s activities, as they are allegedly weakening Germany as a business location, as noted in a Kronen Zeitung report.
- “Elon Musk’s actions, now more or less in a government function, have made us sit up and take notice. We will not accept that,” Hellebrand noted.
- Badenova still uses 11 Teslas in its fleet, but the board member noted that the company will no longer get vehicles from the EV maker after its fleet finishes its lease.
- Viebrockhaus previously acknowledged Tesla, with CEO Lars Viebrock stating that the company revolutionized electric mobility in Germany.
- However, Viebrock noted that his company can no longer support Tesla. “We can no longer support the path we are currently on,” he said.
- Rossmann already noted last summer that it would no longer purchase Teslas for its fleet.
- At the time, the drugstore chain noted that its decision was due to the “incompatibility between the statements of Tesla CEO Elon Musk and the values that Tesla represents with its products.”
Tesla’s silence and potential effects:
- Tesla Germany has not issued a comment about the matter, with a company spokesperson stating, “We do not comment on this.”
- In a comment to the German Press Agency, business ethicist Michael Aßländer from the International University Institute Zittau at the Technical University of Dresden stated that while the companies’ Tesla boycott may make news, the efforts themselves may not affect Tesla as much.
- “Individual decisions by comparatively small companies to avoid the products of certain manufacturers in their purchasing policy in future may make for good PR, but will have little effect,” the business ethicist noted.
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