In-N-Out Burger plans to set up shop in Tennessee, the state’s Gov. Bill Lee and Lynsi Snyder, the chain’s owner and president, announced Tuesday, Jan. 10.
In-N-Out will invest $125.5 million in the state, build a 100,000-square-foot regional hub in Franklin, a suburb of Nashville, and begin opening restaurants in 2026, according to a statement from the governor’s office.
At a press conference in Franklin, Lee appeared next to Snyder in a chef’s apron.
Snyder told The Tennessean, a Nashville newspaper, that she fell in love with the state at first sight on a road trip.
“We came here years ago actually east of the Smokies, but came back out to Pigeon Forge and Nashville and fell in love. There was one other state definitely interested and wanting us there, but we chose Nashville,” the Tennessean quotes her as saying.
She made news in November 2021 by taking a phone call with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Restaurant Business, a trade publication, reported that DeSantis invited In-N-Out to do business in his state and that the invitation was declined.
Tennessee is the farthest east In-N-Out has ventured, except for some pop-ups.
In-N-Out was founded in Baldwin Park by Snyder’s grandparents, Harry and Esther Snyder, in 1948 and has already begun planning its 75th anniversary celebration.
It currently has 385 locations in seven states: California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Texas, Oregon and Colorado. It employs more than 35,000 associates, according to a news release from the company, which is based in Irvine but maintains a strong Baldwin Park presence.
The Tennessee project will initially bring 277 jobs to the Volunteer State, according to the governor’s statement.
In a Twitter video, Lee praised In-N-Out as “a family company with a value system and a way of serving their customers that lines up just right here in Tennessee. And it means a lot of opportunity and a lot of jobs for a lot of Tennesseans.”
“Plus, we’re going to get to have Double-Doubles, fries and shakes right here in the great state of Tennessee,” he added.
