Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Key Takeaways
- Americans love burgers, and In-N-Out Burger is a chain people obsess about even when they can't easily eat there.
- One restaurant expert believes that the California chain can grow successfully by studying its competition and being flexible to new markets.
- "Until you open those doors, you don’t really know what that local customer is going to feel about you," Columbia University's Stephen Zagor told Investopedia.
How much do Americans long to be able to enjoy an In-N’-Out burger? It’s so much that when asked where In-N-Out should expand next, people gave answers from Florida to Massachusetts.
That question, posted on social media platform X, wasn't from the company itself but a fan account asking, “Which eastern state should In-N-Out expand to next?” It received hundreds likes and comments in response. Answers suggested the Midwest, Hawaii, or even Tokyo.
It’s not hard to find a burger in the United States—the business is estimated to be worth more than $100 billion a year—but the lettuce and pickle, it seems, are always greener on the ones you can’t easily eat, leaving plenty of pent-up demand for new choices.
In-N-Out has declined to provide Investopedia with more information on its plans for expansion into Tennessee. The Volunteer State restaurant will be the first In-N-Out east of the Mississippi River. But it's not alone in having growth ambitions: Texas-based Whataburger, for example, has been spreading across the Southeast, while Midwestern chain Culver’s website features a map that shows both available and future markets across the U.S.
When regional chains expand, they have to compete…
Stephen Zagor is an adjunct professor of Columbia Business School, who specializes in restaurant management. He said Tennessee was a good location for In-N Out, given its proximity with other large markets, and its average operating expenses and costs.
Zagor said, “Until you open the doors, you won’t really know how that local customer will feel about you and what their tastes are.” He said that the best-sellers in Tennessee could be items that aren’t as popular elsewhere.
Meanwhile, he said, growing regional chains need to study the competition—right down to its opening and closing times.
"It’s about finding the right place for your model to work out, and finding customers who understand it," he said.
Zagor said In-N-Out is “clever" for having a limited regular menu—mostly burgers and fries—and a not-so-secret secret menu that lets the company use the same ingredients while giving customers the sense of more choices.
Zagor said that fast food restaurants are successful because they have fewer moving parts and waste.
And the Burger Market Is Crowded
America’s love for burgers—whether at national chains, regional restaurants or local diners—manifests in a number of ways. A recent survey found that regional burger chain restaurants have some of the highest ratings for customer satisfaction in the industry.
Arby’s, which is best known for its roast beef, decided to offer them in 2022. McDonald’s, a brand as synonymous with burgers and other fast food as any other, announced that its own burgers are getting a makeover.
When something works, word can travel fast—and far. Americans who do not live near In-N-Out might have tried it while on vacation or heard a celebrity or friend rave about it.
“You’re not just a customer being fed; you’re dining at an In-N-Out," Zagor said. "And I truly believe there is a difference to people."
