Seven Central Coast businesses a part of the NRA Business Alliance

​Tucked away in downtown Santa Ynez is Gabriele Santi’s business, 2nd Amendment Gun Shop.

“Selling guns in this time where there’s a lot of mass shootings is very awkward because you always hope that that gun that you’re selling will not end up in the wrong hands,” Santi told us.

Santi says one of the reasons he’s been able to stick around for the past eight years is because his store is a part of the NRA Business Alliance. He says the NRA has been able to help him get a credit card machine that allots for 70 percent of his business.

“To me, being a part of the alliance is having access to tools and means of doing business that otherwise I would not have if I wasn’t part of the alliance.. it’s a necessity somehow,” he explained.

But now there’s a movement for many businesses to sever ties with the NRA all together. A growing number of companies are announcing they will no longer offer benefits or discounts to NRA members, with some people now boycotting other companies until they take action.

“Do whatever you think is right for you. We live in a democracy you have the right to do whatever you want with certain limitations. If that’s what you feel is right, do it,” Santi said.

Santi does disagree with the NRA’s stances on some issues but he believes the country should focus more on mental health, than trying to take away guns.

“If a criminal wants to commit a crime, he’s going to find a way to get a firearm, he’s going to find a way to have a knife or whatever tool necessary to do his crime,” he explained.

In a quick Google search, we found seven businesses on the Central Coast that are a part of the NRA Business Alliance; a majority of those seven are gun stores.