Cracker Barrel shares plummet after pushback on new logo, brand refresh

Cracker Barrel shares plummet after pushback on new logo, brand refresh


The new Cracker Barrel logo is seen on a menu inside the restaurant on Aug. 21, 2025 in Homestead, Florida.

Joe Raedle | Getty Images

Shares of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store plummeted roughly 10% on Thursday after the restaurant unveiled its new logo earlier this week as part of a larger brand refresh.

The new logo removes the image of a man leaning against a barrel that was prominently featured in the original, leaving behind just the words “Cracker Barrel” against a yellow background. The phrase “old country store” has also been removed.

The company said the colors in the logo were inspired by the chain’s scrambled eggs and biscuits.

The change is part of a “strategic transformation” to revitalize the brand that started back in May 2024. Under that mission, Cracker Barrel’s brand refresh includes updates to visual elements, restaurant spaces and food and retail offerings.

Cracker Barrel’s old and new logo.

Courtesy: Cracker Barrel

Cracker Barrel said in March that the refresh will still maintain the brand’s “rich history of country hospitality” and “authentic charm that has made the brand a beloved destination for generations of families.”

“We believe in the goodness of country hospitality, a spirit that has always defined us. Our story hasn’t changed. Our values haven’t changed,” Chief Marketing Officer Sarah Moore said in a media release.

However, many social media users have criticized the new logo, especially those in conservative circles. The president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., amplified a post on Wednesday suggesting that the logo change was led by CEO Julie Felss Masino to erase the American tradition aspect of the branding and make it more general, as a way of leaning into diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.

Conservative activist Robby Starbuck added his commentary on Thursday, writing in a post on social media site X, “Good morning @CrackerBarrel! You’re about to learn that wokeness really doesn’t pay.”

The company has a relatively small market cap of about $1.2 billion compared with other restaurant chains.

Customers have also complained on social media about the interior redesign of many Cracker Barrel restaurants, saying the new decor favors a more sterile and modern style over its tried-and-true country feel.

On the restaurant’s latest earnings call in June, Masino said Cracker Barrel had completed 20 remodels and 20 refreshes. She said the company will be sharing more information about the remodeling initiative in September.

“Employees had given us great feedback about working in those newly remodeled and refreshed stores and guests continue to tell us that they’re lighter, brighter, more welcoming and they’re enjoying them,” Masino said on the call.

Cracker Barrel is not the only stock to see large swings based on political social media posts.

Earlier this month, shares of American Eagle soared after Trump posted that an ad featuring Sydney Sweeney, which faced significant social media pushback from the left, was “the ‘HOTTEST’ ad out there.”

Back in 2023, Anheuser-Busch InBev faced heavy criticism from conservatives after a collaboration between Bud Light and social influencer Dylan Mulvaney, who is transgender.

Don’t miss these insights from CNBC PRO



Source

Trump is threatening broadcast station licenses – what that means, and how it all works
Business

Trump is threatening broadcast station licenses – what that means, and how it all works

A sign is seen outside of the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” show outside the El Capitan Entertainment Centre on Hollywood Boulevard, from where the show is broadcast in Hollywood, California on Sept. 18, 2025. Frederic J. Brown | AFP | Getty Images Disney’s decision this week to pull “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” from its broadcast network ABC […]

Read More
5 takeaways from CNBC’s investigation into Walmart Marketplace
Business

5 takeaways from CNBC’s investigation into Walmart Marketplace

Walmart‘s online marketplace has become a key part of its strategy to grow profit faster than sales and better compete against its longtime rival, Amazon. As the largest U.S. retailer with more than 4,600 locations nationwide, growing sales online is also critical for its future. But a CNBC investigation found Walmart’s digital boom came as […]

Read More
Walmart’s Marketplace boom: How lax vetting came with identity theft and fakes
Business

Walmart’s Marketplace boom: How lax vetting came with identity theft and fakes

When Mary May started buying from third-party sellers on Walmart‘s online marketplace, she said she assumed the products she was purchasing were the same as the ones she’d long bought in stores.  So in late March when she said she saw a “ridiculous sale” on her favorite Neuriva brain supplements on Walmart’s marketplace, she bought […]

Read More