Sorry, You Can’t Franchise with In-N-Out and Bring it to the East Coast — Here’s Why

In the world of burger chains, few are held in as high esteem as In-N-Out, the West Coast restaurant brand founded in 1948 and the home of the notorious Double Double. But whenever non-West Coast fans discuss the chain, the question always comes up: Why is In-N-Out only in one part of the country? The brand’s footprint currently includes restaurants in just seven West Coast states: California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Texas, Oregon and Colorado. 

The exclusivity has been puzzling fans and potential business owners alike for decades — the brilliant minds over at Harvard Business School even released a study on the topic. And rumors of In-N-Out secretly coming to major areas on the East Coast, such as New York City, have been popping up for just as long. In 2019, a stray Double Double was discovered on a street in Queens, causing an uproar on social media as hopeful fans theorized that the chain was finally headed to the Big Apple. It turned out to be a fluke, and the brand says they have no plans on making it over that way anytime soon. 

But the question remains: why?

For one, it comes down to logistics. Business Insider notes that the brand’s commitment to freshness — the chain refuses to sell frozen patties and locations don’t have any freezers or microwaves — means that all In-N-Out restaurants are required to be located within 300 miles of an In-N-Out meat distribution center. Currently, there are only two distribution centers: one in California and one in Texas.

Of course, other restaurant chains that use unfrozen beef have found ways to maintain their brand standards all over the world, including Five Guys, Smashburger and even McDonald’s, but the key difference comes down to one factor: franchising.

The In-N-Out brand is still 100% corporate-owned by the founding Snyder family, who are uninterested in offering any kind of franchising opportunities. This means In-N-Out doesn’t have the infrastructure and bandwidth that would allow for the brand to expand into Eastern territories. 

"The only reason we would [franchise] is for money, and I wouldn't do it," said Lynsi Snyder — the company president and only grandchild of In-N-Out founders Harry and Esther Snyder — explained in an interview with CBS.

Last, but certainly not least, In-N-Out knows not to fix something that isn’t broken. Maintaining a limited footprint gives the chain a certain exclusive mystique for consumers, which likely plays a large part in the brand’s unanimously beloved reputation.

For the time being, In-N-Out’s commitment to fresh meat and it's distaste for franchising means entrepreneurs looking to satisfy legions of hungry fans by introducing the brand east of Texas are, sadly, out of luck.