Samsung Heads South, Leaves New Jersey for Texas

More than 300 companies moved to Texas in the past decade, taking advantage of its location and transit networks, not to mention no state income tax.

The logo of the Samsung Electronics Co. at its office in Seoul, South Korea, on Jan. 31, 2023. Ahn Young-joon/AP Photo

Samsung has become the latest company to leave the Northeast and head south.

On June 1, the South Korean technology company announced that its U.S. headquarters would leave its current location in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, for Plano, Texas, by the end of this year. This follows a recent move by Exxon, which shifted its legal domicile from New Jersey to Texas.

Samsung stated on X that Texas is “the state where Samsung has poured billions into setting up chipmaking plants.”

“As onshore chipmaking is slated to become a vital part of its U.S. business, it would only make sense for Samsung to move its base of operations closest to its most vital moneymaking operations,” the company stated.

Samsung has built its most advanced U.S. chipmaking plants in Taylor, Texas, where the company will use highly advanced manufacturing processes to produce 2nm chips, a cutting-edge generation of microchips. The company’s move to Texas comes only a year after it established its headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, where it currently employs about 1,000 people.

Texas, which charges no state income tax, has become one of the most popular destination states for companies and individuals in recent years. The Texas Economic Development Corporation (TEDC) reports that 314 companies moved to Texas between 2014 and 2025. The TEDC notes Texas’s 34 free trade zones, 23 seaports, 380 airports, extensive road and rail networks, and a central location within the United States.

“Major employers continue choosing Texas over any other state because we have built a climate where businesses can grow, invest, and create jobs with confidence,” Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows told The Epoch Times. “From our skilled workforce and abundant energy resources to a predictable regulatory environment and competitive tax structure, Texas offers the certainty and opportunity employers need to succeed.”

According to IRS data collected by VoteWithYourFeet, Texas gained nearly 1.5 million new residents between 2012 and 2023. During this period, Texas added about $63 billion in personal income, and while the largest share of this income inflow came from people moving out of California ($23.7 billion), former New Jersey residents contributed $3.2 billion.

“Over the past several years, Texas has made a noticeable effort to embrace the business community,” Darren Woods, ExxonMobil CEO, stated in announcing their move. “In doing so, it has created a policy and regulatory environment that can allow the company to maximize shareholder value.” 

Although incorporated in New Jersey, Exxon has had its physical headquarters in Texas since 1989.

Asset manager William Flaig, CEO of the American Conservative Values ETF, said that as an investor he concurs with Exxon shareholders, who approved the move to Texas in May.

“Obviously there’s a short term cost for relocating headquarters and having to transition staff, but the lower regulatory and tax environment is, for both the people who work there and the companies, a benefit,” Flaig said.