Tesla is opening its second store in the state of New Mexico, according to a report from the Albuquerque Journal (via Automotive News).
The company has partnered with the American Indian tribes of Santa Ana Pueblo to open a sales location in their city, which is classified as a sovereign nation. This allows Tesla to work around New Mexico’s ban on direct-to-consumer vehicle sales since state laws don’t apply to sovereign nations.
Automakers and lawmakers alike have been trying to repeal New Mexico’s ban on direct vehicle sales, albeit to no avail so far. That said, the state legislature this year passed a bill that allows customers to buy vehicles on tribal land without being double-taxed. Tesla similarly opened its first New Mexico sales store in Nambé Pueblo, another sovereign nation, last year.
“This just opens the door,” Santa Ana Governor Joey Sanchez said in a statement. “This is just planting the seed into the future.”
Tesla was already leasing warehouse space in Santa Ana for a mobile repair unit. Governor Sanchez added that Tesla approached the pueblo last year about opening a store on its land. The two parties were able to strike up an agreement, and Tesla has already started construction on the store.
Tesla’s Santa Ana store will be located close to some of the largest cities in New Mexico, and it has a target opening date of May 2023. The company will train tribal members to work as service technicians at the location, which will also employ people from the outside pueblo.
“This wasn’t an easy road to bring the Tesla project to the pueblo,” said Glenn Tenorio, chairman of Tamaya Ventures, the business arm of Santa Ana’s Tamaya tribe. “But the fruits of our labor have become a reality.”
According to a report from last month, Tesla is also considering making investments in Mexican border states.
