Home of the HQ: Why Companies Are Relocating to Williamson County, TN
For decades, strong schools, safe communities and a high quality of life have attracted families to Williamson County. Over time, those same qualities began attracting something else: corporate headquarters.
Today, more than 40 corporate headquarters call Williamson County home, making the county one of the Southeast’s most concentrated hubs of corporate leadership.
Tractor Supply Company, Nissan North America, Mars Petcare, Community Health Systems, Jackson National Life Insurance and In-N-Out Burger all have major operations here, giving Williamson County a business roster that spans retail, automotive, healthcare, insurance, media and food service.
Matt Largen, president and CEO of Williamson, Inc., says the building blocks for that success were placed long before many of those company names appeared on local office buildings.
“I think the foundation was built decades ago, around resourcing and strengthening our public school system, and we are still feeling the effects of that today,” Largen says. “Companies are attracted to our community because of the talent here and our proven ability to source talent from all over the globe.”
In This Article
A Whole Lot of Horsepower: Tractor Supply Company
Few companies illustrate Williamson County’s staying power better than Tractor Supply Company.
The nation’s largest rural lifestyle retailer moved its headquarters operations to Middle Tennessee in 1979, opened its Brentwood Store Support Center in 2004 and expanded into a custom-built, 260,000-square-foot campus on Virginia Way in 2014.
Today, approximately 1,700 team members work from the Brentwood headquarters, supporting more than 2,400 stores nationwide.
“Williamson County offers a compelling combination of business and lifestyle advantages,” says Mary Winn Pilkington, senior vice president of investor relations and public relations for Tractor Supply. “With a highly educated workforce, excellent schools, a strong quality of life and a thriving business community, the county consistently attracts top employers and talent alike.”
The connection runs deeper than logistics. Tractor Supply points to local institutions and traditions – including the Williamson County Fair, Franklin Rodeo, Brentwood Summer Concert Series and The Tractor Supply Co. Arena at Harlinsdale Farm – as examples of a community culture that aligns with the company’s values of hard work, family and giving back.
All A’s: The Business Fundamentals
Corporate loyalty on this scale does not happen by accident. Williamson County holds an AAA bond rating – a prestigious benchmark of financial health – and maintains a property tax rate that Williamson, Inc. describes as among the lowest in the Nashville region.
Those fundamentals, combined with a highly educated workforce, strong schools and easy access to Nashville, have helped make the county a destination for long-term corporate investment.
According to Largen, quality of life is often a deciding factor when CEOs and site selectors visit. “In our county, you can live in downtown Franklin or on a farm in Leiper’s Fork, and everything in between. Our connectivity to Nashville, our low crime rate, that sense of safety – and access to high-quality healthcare – are all key.”
And Tennessee’s lack of a state income tax certainly doesn’t hurt, either.
The seamless intersection of economic incentives, talent density, and world-class infrastructure turns casual interest into permanent relocation.
Just Getting Started: More Companies Relocating to Williamson County
Williamson County’s headquarters story is still growing. In-N-Out Burger selected Franklin for its eastern territory office as part of the company’s expansion into Tennessee, adding another nationally recognized brand to the county’s corporate roster.
For Largen, that kind of investment is encouraging, but it is not a reason to ease up.
“We can’t rest on our success,” he says. “A lot of other communities want to be Williamson County, and the minute you start getting complacent, others catch up.”
That challenge is also part of the county’s opportunity. Williamson County’s headquarters advantage rests not only on the companies already here, but on the schools, talent, quality of life and community investment that keep businesses and people coming back for good.
You Get What You Give
Corporate headquarters bring more than recognizable names to Williamson County. They create career pathways in fields such as finance, technology, human resources, marketing, operations and executive leadership.
For residents, that means opportunities to build careers close to home. For students, Largen says, it gives them a reason to return after college.
“These companies provide opportunities for our residents and our students,” Largen says. “They may go somewhere else to college, but with the corporate headquarters we have here, it’s a reason for them to come back and start their careers.”
Headquarters also tend to deepen their roots in the communities where they are based. Largen says philanthropy is one of the clearest examples.
“Companies tend to give where their headquarters are located,” he says. “Our nonprofits have benefited due to that philanthropy.”
Get to Know Williamson County
Want to learn more about living and working in Williamson County, TN? Check out the latest edition of Livability Williamson County, Tennessee.