It\u2019s been a busy week for Cracker Barrel Old Country Store\u2019s marketing team.<\/p>\n
The restaurant chain announced a rebrand and new logo last week, faced widespread criticism from social media users, including President Donald Trump, and proceeded to walk back its plan to change the logo.<\/p>\n
In that span of time, the company lost and regained almost $100 million in market value, bringing it about back to where it started. The stock gained 8% on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The Cracker Barrel saga is just the latest example of a consumer-facing company making big branding decisions, then pulling back after alienating its customer base.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s very tricky to be a brand for everyone today,\u201d Carreen Winters, president of reputation at the global public relations firm MikeWorldWide, said in an interview. \u201cLegacy brands are particularly tricky, because you have to figure out what is cherished and authentic from the old and marry it with the new.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn Cracker Barrel\u2019s case, they\u2019re trying to attract a new, younger customer [which] is no longer sufficient,\u201d she continued. \u201cYou need to actually think about all of your stakeholders and how they will react, respond, feel about what you\u2019re doing or the direction you\u2019re taking. And you need to be sure that what you\u2019re doing is consistent with shared values.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rebranding failures are not a new phenomenon. One of the most famous marketing blunders of all time happened in 1985 when the Coca-Cola company introduced \u201cNew Coke\u201d with a new formula. After a firestorm of outrage from its customers, the company returned to its classic formula a few months later.<\/p>\n
But social media has made backlash from consumers faster and more widespread, meaning businesses are usually quicker to walk back on their branding failures.<\/p>\n
In 2010, retailer Gap ditched its decades-old blue box logo for a more minimalist design. It faced intense backlash on social media through thousands of engagements and, within less than a week, the company said it was reverting to its original logo.<\/p>\n
More recently in May, Warner Bros. Discovery announced its streaming platform would undergo another name change, after switching from HBO to HBO Max to Max and then back again to HBO Max.<\/p>\n
Major rebrands don\u2019t always go awry. For example, Kentucky Fried Chicken successfully rebranded to KFC in 1991. Its customers already used the acronym and the rebrand signified that the restaurant chain offers more than just fried chicken.<\/p>\n
Dunkin\u2019 Donuts also successfully underwent its name change to Dunkin\u2019 in 2019. It did face some criticism from its loyal customers at the time, but Winters said today the \u201cDunkin\u2019\u201d name and branding are widely accepted over its original name.<\/p>\n
\u201cDunkin\u2019 rebranded in accordance with the behavior that the customer created,\u201d she said. \u201cIt aligned with their strategy of being more than Donuts and really building their coffee business.\u201d<\/p>\n
She also mentioned IHOP as an example of a brand that has been able to freshen up its look and stay relevant in culture. She said IHOP\u2019s change has been an \u201cevolution, not a revolution.\u201d<\/p>\n
Beth LaGuardia Cooper, chief marketing officer at Advantage, The Authority Company, added during an interview that Starbucks had subtle changes to its logo over time, which allowed it to hold the base of its identity close.<\/p>\n
While some social media users disliked Cracker Barrel\u2019s new branding simply because they said it lacked substance and was too \u201csterile\u201d or \u201csoulless,\u201d others, especially conservatives, claimed the new logo leaned into \u201cwokeness\u201d and diversity efforts.<\/p>\n
Cracker Barrel is widely considered a classic American restaurant chain. It began in Tennessee in 1969 and its branding evokes Southern charm and nostalgia for its consumer base.<\/p>\n
Eric Schiffer, chairman of the firm Reputation Management Consultants, said the new branding, without the iconic \u201cUncle Herschel\u201d figure, suggested to conservatives that having a white man featured on the logo was wrong or politically incorrect.<\/p>\n
He said that pushback represents a larger trend where conservatives are feeling under attack by diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the perspective of conservatives is, don\u2019t ruin Cracker Barrel with the Bud Light meets Jaguar marketing playbook,\u201d said Schiffer, adding that those brands \u201cattempted to disrupt positively and what they did was they nuked brand sentiment and shareholder confidence.\u201d<\/p>\n
In November, Tata Motors-owned Jaguar Land Rover announced a rebrand that removed its \u201cleaper\u201d big cat imagery from its logo and changed the brand\u2019s font. Its new promotional materials included brightly dressed models, but no cars. The brand faced significant pushback, including tens of thousands of responses on social media.<\/p>\n
Elon Musk criticized the company on X at the time, asking Jaguar\u2019s official account: \u201cDo you sell cars?\u201d<\/p>\n
Earlier this month, Trump piped in with his insults, calling Jaguar\u2019s ad campaign \u201cstupid\u201d and \u201cseriously WOKE.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Telegraph reported in May that Jaguar was searching for a new advertising agency after the public backlash.<\/p>\n
Similarly, Anheuser-Busch InBev\u2019s Bud Light faced heavy criticism from conservatives in 2023 after a collaboration between the beer brand and social influencer Dylan Mulvaney, who is transgender.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re trying to be a tough, male-focused, football fan-oriented beer, the last thing you want to do is put the wrong spokesperson in front of the brand,\u201d Schiffer said. \u201cIt will turn off that audience and it allows competitors to capture that market share.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe throughline in all of this is, don\u2019t rip apart and disrespect audiences that brought you to the dance,\u201d Schiffer said. \u201cFind a way, if you\u2019re going to want to expand, do it in a way that doesn\u2019t cut at the core of what the brand stands for \u2014 and in the process, create cognitive dissonance and blow up market cap.\u201d<\/p>\n
Branding experts told CNBC that at the end of the day, people are talking about Cracker Barrel, which is a win for the company by itself.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody loves a comeback in America,\u201d LaGuardia Cooper said. \u201cSo I would root for them to make this happen, make something good out of it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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