Your Survival Guy’s “Escape States” are the bottom ten states from my annual Super States rankings. In the 2025 ranking, California was the worst of the bunch. A combination of punitive taxation, freedom-limiting regulation, and high costs makes California a tough place for movers looking for a new home for their retirement or business. That feeling isn’t limited to mom and pop, either. The executive chairman of the resurrected Bed Bath & Beyond isn’t planning any stores in California and calls the state “one of the most overregulated, expensive, and risky environments for businesses.” Ana Kasparian of Real Clear Investigations reports:
As it emerges from bankruptcy, Bed, Bath & Beyond has announced plans to open 300 new stores in the next two years – though not a single one will be in California, the state that used to be a center of its operations.
The home goods retailer, which once operated 90 stores in California – the highest number in any state – is seeking a fresh start in business-friendly Southern states. Its first location opened in Nashville, Tennessee, in August 2024 under the new name “Bed Bath & Beyond Home.”
“California has created one of the most overregulated, expensive, and risky environments for businesses,” the company’s executive chairman, Marcus Lemonis, said in a statement on X. “It’s a system that makes it harder to employ people, harder to keep doors open, and harder to deliver value to customers.”
Action Line: If you’re looking for a new home to spend your retirement life in, or a new place for your business, begin your search with my 2025 Super States. And click here to subscribe to my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter.
