Yamaha Relocates US Headquarters From California to Georgia

Yamaha Motor Corporation U.S.A. will relocate its U.S. headquarters to Georgia beginning later this year.

A Yamaha logo during the Tokyo Motor Show in Tokyo on Oct. 23, 2019. Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images

After 47 years of operation in California, Yamaha Motor Corporation U.S.A. will relocate its U.S. headquarters to Georgia beginning later this year, a decision that is receiving praise from the Peach State.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp welcomed the manufacturing company in an announcement on March 10, saying, “After many years of great partnership, we are honored and proud to welcome Yamaha’s American headquarters to the No. 1 state for business.”

This move follows an October 2025 meeting between Yamaha executives and Kemp at the annual Southeast U.S./Japan gathering in Tokyo, Japan. The governor’s office stated that Yamaha “already has a strong presence in the Peach State, employing over 2,300 Georgians.”

The company cited a need for “improving asset efficiency and enhancing profitability in the United States” as the reason behind its exit from California. It also pointed to rising operating costs from tariffs and changes in the market.

Yamaha Motor Corporation U.S.A. is a subsidiary of the Japan-based Yamaha Motor Co. The company bought land in Cypress, California, in 1978 and established its U.S. headquarters there in 1979.

In 1986, the company opened a 1.3-million-square-foot factory in Newnan, Georgia. The factory now employs around 2,000 people in Georgia, according to the governor’s press release.

Over the years, the company has been slowly moving parts of its operations from Cypress, California to Kennesaw, Georgia—roughly 50 miles north of Newnan—to “serve the customer better,” according to the company’s press release. Its Marine Business relocated to Kennesaw in 1999, followed by its Motorsports Business in 2019.

In 2023, the company expanded its marine division by adding a 75,000-square-foot Marine Innovation Center.

This left the Cypress location to only house corporate functions and financial services.

Yamaha is now looking to sell the 25 acres of land and other assets it has in Cypress as it moves the remaining parts of the business to Kennesaw. It aims to complete the transition by the end of 2028.

“This is another loud and clear testament to what we offer job creators from around the world,” said Kemp.

Georgia offers tax credits and exemptions as incentives for businesses looking to launch and grow, according to the state’s Department of Economic Development. For example, companies may be eligible for tax credits when creating new jobs in eight specific industries, including manufacturing.

Companies may also earn tax credits for investing in manufacturing or telecommunications facilities. Additionally, businesses that spend on equipment necessary for manufacturing may be eligible for exemptions to the state’s sales tax.

Georgia also has a lower corporate tax rate of 5.19 percent compared to California’s 8.84 percent. According to the Tax Foundation’s 2026 State Tax Competitiveness Index, Georgia’s corporate tax rate ranks 9th nationwide, whereas California’s ranks 41st.

Yamaha Motor Corporation—which builds all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), boat engines, and personal watercraft, among other motorized products—is among a handful of companies relocating operations or headquarters out of California in recent years.

Companies such as Chevron, Tesla, Oracle, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise have relocated their headquarters out of California to states like Texas or Nevada, citing increasing operating costs and shifts in supply and demand.

While these companies continue to participate in California’s economy, other businesses have cut ties with the Golden State completely. Republic National Distributing Company, the nation’s second-largest wine and spirits distributor, announced plans in 2025 to end services in California due to “shifts that have made it difficult to operate sustainably in the state.”

Some insurance companies, such as Farmers Direct Property and Casualty Insurance Company, American National, and Merastar Insurance, left California’s market between 2023 and 2024 and ended coverage for homeowners and vehicles.

Meanwhile, In-N-Out Burger announced that its CEO is relocating out of California to Tennessee, while the corporate headquarters remains in California. CEO Lynsi Snyder pointed to the state’s high cost of living and business operations.

As companies leaving the Golden State have continued to make headlines in recent years, a June 2025 report from the nonpartisan think tank Public Policy Institute of California found that the number of businesses leaving is relatively small compared to the number of new and existing ones.

California is home to over 47,000 corporate headquarters, and 789, or 1.9 percent, left between 2011 and 2021, according to the report. It also noted that companies with over 100 employees were more likely to relocate compared to small-sized businesses, and that the companies that left tended to move to states with lower taxes and less regulation.