00:00Whataburger pulls out across the south restaurants shut down in three states
00:05ahead of expansion shift eight Whataburger locations in Alabama Georgia
00:10and Tennessee abruptly closed in mid-December 2024 raising questions
00:15about the chain southeast expansion seven sites shut at 11 59 p.m.
00:20on december 15th 2024 and the athens georgia location closed december
00:2514th 2024 less than a year after most opened closures hit
00:30college towns and fast-growing suburbs like auburn tuscaloosa athens and middle tennessee
00:35that were expected to serve heavy student and commuter traffic the swift reverse
00:40jolted communities where whataburger had quickly become part of daily life
00:45since late 2022 whataburger has opened dozens of southeast locations in cities
00:50like atlanta and nashville that rapid push strained operations as the brand
00:55moved from a texas favorite toward a regional powerhouse but some markets could not
01:00yet support it several shuttered units were less than a year old including some
01:05sites opened between march 2024 and july 2024
01:10light traffic in parts of north georgia and execution issues suggest expansion outpacing
01:15east coast-based demand and scalability eight restaurants are permanently closing four
01:20four in tennessee two in georgia and two in alabama all closed
01:25at 11 59 p.m on december 15th 2024 except athens on december
01:3014th 2024 representing less than one percent of total locations and a
01:35a pullback from underperforming areas auburn and tuscaloosa lose a late
01:40night option and athens georgia joins them murfreesboro mount juliet
01:45and clarksville in tennessee also lose a drive-through reshaping local fast food
01:50choices overnight employees are being offered transfers to nearby locations to soften
01:55the blow but in smaller markets longer commutes shifted schedules and tough
02:00stay or go decisions remain what a burger says the closures reflect root
02:05teen reviews to prioritize areas with the most growth potential shuttering under
02:10performers redirects resources to higher volume markets and refines the expansion model
02:15for long-term success despite closures a 2026 plan targets around
02:2070 new locations with more than 40 in the southeast the company frames
02:25this as a recalibration not a retreat signaling commitment to high potential markets
02:30a 20-year-old downtown houston tunnel location closed on september
02:3522nd 2024 due to reduced traffic from remote work and limited hours
02:40the move shows a broader reassessment of urban sites post-pandemic
02:45pandemic
02:46pandemic
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