Smith & Wesson are moving their headquarters out of historic Springfield, Mass., to Tennessee following proposed restrictive legislation in their home state.
Smith & Wesson, one of the world’s most significant and storied firearms manufacturers, has been headquartered in Springfield, Massachusetts for over 150 years. Despite the company’s affinity with their historic home in New England’s “Gun Valley”, they announced today their intentions to move the company’s headquarters to Maryville, Tennessee in 2023. The announcement follows new proposed legislation in Massachusetts that Smith & Wesson claimed would change the climate of gun manufacturing in the state for the worse.
Smith & Wesson President and CEO Mark Smith had this to say about the upcoming move:
This has been an extremely difficult and emotional decision for us, but after an exhaustive and thorough analysis, for the continued health and strength of our iconic company, we feel that we have been left with no other alternative.
The legislation in question would prohibit the manufacturing of certain kinds of firearms within Massachusetts, firearms that comprise over 60 percent of Smith & Wesson’s yearly revenue. The company stated that even if the specific legislation in question were to fail, similar measures would likely be raised in the future thanks to the state’s growing anti-gun political environment. If enacted, the arbitrary legislation would not make Massachusetts any safer, but its proposal has earned its backers a few cookie points with their already loyal pro-gun control voter base. All it cost them was 550 good jobs leaving their state forever.
Smith’s new Tennessee headquarters will be located in a Second Amendment sanctuary county that has a strong pro-gun culture. This move will likely not be the last of its kind as the country continues to polarize along political lines, as anti-gun state governments will continue to erode away at 2A freedoms while others fortify them. Gun owners in America are used to the death by a thousand cuts strategy, so it’s good to see companies as iconic as Smith & Wesson finally say that enough is enough. Firearms companies should not be providing tax revenue to governments that seek to restrict gun ownership amongst their own populations.
The move will not begin until 2023, and Smith stated that their Springfield location will remain active and retain at least 1,000 employees for continued parts manufacturing and revolver assembly operations. They do not expect the move to put any damper on their output, but once some facilities are consolidated into their new Tennessee location Smith & Wesson claims that their manufacturing and distribution processes will be significantly streamlined.
Domenic Sarno, Mayor of Springfield, expressed regret for the currently employed Smith workers who will be affected by the move and stated that his office will be assisting them in any way they can. The best assistance these individuals could have received would have been their representatives not supporting anti-constitutional, anti-freedom legislation. Legislation that drives away good, legal and safe businesses to states that have a better understanding of this country’s founding principles. Presuming that gun-grabbing politicians will continue to not understand this, they can continue to say goodbye to some of their state’s most historical and beloved companies.
For more information, please visit smith-wesson.com.
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