Kerby Anderson

Many companies have made the decision to move their headquarters out of California. But the latest decision by In-N-Out Burger is something new because most of their restaurants are in the state of California. And the president of In-N-Out says she is leaving not only for financial reasons but also for personal and family reasons.

Allie Beth Stuckey (who used to be one of the regular cohosts of the Point of View millennial roundtable) recently interviewed Lynsi Snyder (president of In-N-Out). Snyder explained, “I really loved living in Northern California and I'm so thankful that I grew up there because I think it changed a lot of who I am today.” She added, “there’s a lot of great things about California, but raising a family is not easy here. Doing business is not easy here.”

I appreciated that she mentioned both issues. In previous commentaries, I have talked about the economic challenges in California that resulted in the exodus of companies like Tesla. The high taxes and excessive regulation are often enough for a company to leave California. But there were also the political and cultural issues that weighed heavy on her. And this was not an easy decision given that two-thirds of all the In-N-Out restaurants are in California.

When I was growing up in California, we often heard people refer to the state as the Golden State. The nickname began with the California Gold Rush but applied to the many other positive aspects. A popular song in the 1960s was “California Dreamin'” sung by The Mamas & The Papas. It talked about people in other parts of America who had to endure cold winters and thus longed for the warmth and sunshine of California.

Unfortunately, people are no longer talking about California dreaming, but instead about California leaving.