Smith & Wesson Moving To 2nd Amendment Friendly Tennessee

Why would any gun manufacturer run its business and pay taxes in a state where policymakers are trying to pass anti-gun laws that could put them out of business?

Smith & Wesson has been headquartered in Massachusetts since the company was founded in 1856. But no longer.

Citing “arbitrary and damaging” legislation being considered by the Massachusetts state government, Smith & Wesson CEO and President Mark Smith announced that after 169 years in Massachusetts the company is moving to Blount County, Tennessee and the town of Maryville just outside of Knoxville. The Blount County Commission in 2019 passed a resolution declaring the county a “Second Amendment Sanctuary.”

CEO Mark Smith specifically cited legislation recently proposed in Massachusetts that, if enacted, would prohibit the company from manufacturing certain firearms in the state—guns that produced 60% of the company’s reveune.

“These bills would prevent Smith & Wesson from manufacturing firearms that are legal in almost every state in America and that are safely used by tens of millions of law-abiding citizens every day exercising their Constitutional 2^nd Amendment rights, protecting themselves and their families, and enjoying the shooting sports,” Smith said. “While we are hopeful that this arbitrary and damaging legislation will be defeated in this session, these products made up over 60% of our revenue last year, and the unfortunate likelihood that such restrictions would be raised again led to a review of the best path forward for Smith & Wesson.”

Construction on the new Smith & Wesson headquarters in Maryville, Tennessee will begin this year.

Smith & Wesson will take 750 jobs to Tennessee and invest an estimated $125 million in the location economy, according to the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development. In addition to a bulk of the new jobs for Tennessee moving from Massachusetts, some jobs will also be consolidated from Connecticut and Missouri facilities and moved to Tennessee. The company’s plastic injection molding facility in Deep River, Connecticut, which services Smith & Wesson and a significant number of external customers, will be sold. The Smith & Wesson portion of the operations will be moved to the new facility in Maryville.

“We would like to specifically thank (Tennesee) Governor Lee for his decisive contributions, and the entire state legislature for their unwavering support of the 2nd Amendment and for creating a welcoming, business-friendly environment,” Smith said.