Car dealerships have been around forever. But that dealership model is very specifically designed; though a dealership might bear a big corporate name -- like Ford, for example -- these dealerships are not owned or operated by the manufacturer. They are separately owned franchises.
Recently, though, a new model has started to crop up: direct-to-consumer sales. This model -- utilized by Tesla -- cuts the middleman out of the transaction.
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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill June 13 that prohibits car manufacturers from using this direct-to-consumer sales model in Florida. The bill represents a big protection for dealerships and serves as a bit of a blow to manufacturers.
Though laws like this one are nothing new, the bill, which will go into effect July 1, carries a notable exception that will allow (TSLA), and other newer EV manufacturers, to carry on with their direct-sales method.
The bill says that a manufacturer cannot own or operate a dealership if that manufacturer has, in the past, distributed cars "under a franchise agreement in this state with an independent person."
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This essentially prevents all legacy automakers from going direct-to-consumer, but it will allow for the newer brands, namely Tesla, Rivian and Lucid, to take advantage of the direct-sales model.
The move comes a little under a month after Tesla CEO Elon Musk helped DeSantis launch his presidential campaign through a Twitter Spaces interview.
During the glitchy event, DeSantis praised Musk for his purchase of Twitter, calling him a "free speech advocate."
