In-N-(Slinking) Out (of California?)

The Washington Examiner asks if California's iconic In-N-Out hamburger chain might quit that state altogether over time.

In-N-Out has been expanding -- They're in Texas. One state to go for me! -- and recently established an "eastern territory office" in Tennessee. The company's CEO moved there not so long ago due to the difficulties raising a family in California.

These things alone simply point to a growing company and a family following the footsteps of so many others that California lost a seat in the House after the last census, and stands to lose five more in the next.

But causes for the latter have a lot to do with why the former could be more than a nationwide expansion:

In-N-Out permanently closed its Oakland location, the chain's first-ever closure, thanks to the city's crime crisis. Driven by soft-on-crime California law and soft-on-crime Oakland "prosecutors," the crime crisis in the city became so dangerous that the chain could no longer guarantee the safety of its employees or customers, despite still being profitable.

In-N-Out then joined the push to repeal some of California's soft-on-crime policies with Prop 36, fighting against state Democrats (including Newsom) to sell the ballot measure to voters. In-N-Out stood against California's coddling of criminals and its COVID-19 authoritarianism, fighting both every step of the way.

But those fights can be exhausting, especially as California's business environment worsens. The chain has had to raise prices after California Democrats jacked up the minimum wage for fast-food workers. In-N-Out's starting wage was already higher than the original $16 per hour and the new $20 per hour. However, California's heavy-handed actions led to inflation that all businesses must account for in their pricing. [links omitted, bold added]

One thing I can think of that makes a complete withdrawal from California unlikely any time soon is that the chain doesn't use the franchise model, which California law makes problematic. But as awful as California's business climate is, a corporate relocation could end up making lots of sense.

-- CAV