The name on everyone’s lips this week is Cracker Barrel. The restaurant chain sparked mass backlash after unveiling a new logo and in-store “rebrand” last week.
The redesign marks Cracker Barrel’s first major change in 48 years. The new logo removes the man in overalls leaning on a barrel and drops the phrase “old country store” in favor of a minimalistic yellow-and-brown wordmark. The chain also plans to swap its Western, antique-filled interiors for lighter, modern décor. This caused conservative fans of the brand to claim it had gone “woke.”
Interest in Cracker Barrel has surged. Google Trends shows the chain at peak popularity, and it’s been a trending topic on X, formerly Twitter, since Thursday. Even former President Donald Trump has now weighed in — and prompted the White House to redraw the Cracker Barrel logo.
Early Monday, Trump posted on TruthSocial that the company should return to its old logo and capitalize on “a Billion Dollars worth of free publicity.”
“Make Cracker Barrel a WINNER again. Remember, in just a short period of time I made the United States of America the ‘HOTTEST’ Country anywhere in the World. One year ago, it was ‘DEAD.’ Good luck!” Trump wrote.
Then, on Tuesday, the official White House X account shared an image wherein an illustration of Donald Trump replaced the man in the rocker in the original Cracker Barrel logo. Inside the barrel was the phrase “America First,” while beneath it, they wrote, “America is back.”
The White House’s caption? “Go woke, go broke.”
For their part, Cracker Barrel has tried to tamp down the backlash. “You’ve also shown us that we could’ve done a better job sharing who we are and who we’ll always be,” the company said in a statement. “We also want to be sure Cracker Barrel is here for the next generation… that means showing up on new platforms and in new ways.”
But the comments on their Instagram posts are still largely negative with many calling the apology “the biggest insult” and a “spit in the face.”
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