Cracker Barrel unveiled a streamlined logo and updated store designs, removing its literal barrel and the elderly character after 56 years. The redesign provoked a brutal reaction from loyal customers and widespread social media criticism. Julie Felss Masino, who joined in 2023, promised a grand transformation intended to pay off by 2027. Marketing professor David Reibstein offered a mixed review, noting brands must refresh even at the risk of upsetting loyal patrons. Analyst Jake Bartlett highlighted years of declining foot traffic and urged widening appeal to younger families. The company tested updated interiors in some shops and discussed experiments with investors and customers. Masino addressed criticism on Good Morning America. South Korea's president traveled to Washington, D.C. and Asian markets rose after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled openness to rate cuts.
How do you freshen things up without alienating loyal customers? We're talking, of course, about the frenzy around Cracker Barrel, which has seen a brutal reaction to its modernization push and especially its new streamlined logo unveiled last week. Although the logo looked similar to the old one-brown and yellow with the same old-timey font-it didn't include a literal barrel and the elderly character who had sat on a chair next to it for most of the company's 56 years.
When I asked David Reibstein, a professor of marketing at The Wharton School, for his take on the fiasco, he gave the company and CEO Julie Felss Masino a mixed review. Brands have little choice but to make refreshments and face the ire of loyal customers who might feel unsettled by newness, so he applauds the CEO for insisting that Cracker Barrel evolve.
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