President Donald Trump is once again crowning himself the king of culture wars, bragging that his Truth Social rant bullied Cracker Barrel into ditching its ill-fated new logo.
The Southern Comfort chain announced Tuesday it would bring back its old-timey “uncle in overalls” mascot mere hours after Trump told them to admit a mistake, calling customer outrage “the ultimate poll.” Naturally, the White House rushed to claim credit for the about-face, as if it were some kind of geopolitical victory.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt even gloated online with screenshots of Trump’s post, while Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich said Cracker Barrel executives personally thanked the president for his “leadership” on logos.
“I appreciated the call earlier this evening with @CrackerBarrel. They thanked President Trump for weighing in on the issue of their iconic ‘original’ logo,” Budowich wrote on X. “They wanted the President to know that they heard him, along with customer response (the ultimate poll), and would be restoring the ‘Old Timer.’”
Trump himself couldn’t resist another round of self-congratulations. He wrote that Cracker Barrel “made your customers happy again,” then shared a parody logo featuring his own likeness next to an oil barrel stamped with “America First.” Because of course he did.
The company’s stock, which had tanked last week after the redesign rollout, suddenly rebounded on the news. The MAGA world is treating this like the moon landing.
Cracker Barrel, meanwhile, is still trying to spin the whole thing as a warm embrace of nostalgia: “You’ve shown us how deeply people care about our ‘old-timer,’” the chain said in a statement, calling the botched rebrand a “learning moment.”
Critics say the debacle exposed just how fragile the brand has become. After decades of growth, its profits have been sinking. Marketing experts are calling the logo switch a “flop,” a “severing from its roots,” and “a mistake so obvious, it’s almost funny.”
But in Trump’s world, the fiasco is proof he’s still the most powerful brand manager alive.
“They got a Billion Dollars worth of free publicity if they play their cards right, Trump bragged. “Very tricky to do, but a great opportunity.”
“Have a major News Conference today. 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,’” the President falsely claimed.
The reactions to Leavitt’s post were mixed. Some support or amplify Trump’s stance, while others criticize the focus on Cracker Barrel as a distraction from more serious issues.
“President Trump was right yet again!” one supporter rejoiced, echoing the sentiment of others. Common sense is back!!” added another.
“Wokeness is dying in America and President Trump is leading the charge,” one supporter proclaimed.
However, critics did not shy away from calling out the pettiness of the logo controversy.
“Do we really have a president of the United States getting involved in a restaurant’s logo? I guess he really doesn’t have anything else to do. Dumbest president ever,” one obvious critic wrote. “I can not believe you people are trying to take credit for this….. is it because this admin is consistently falling short otherwise?” another added.
“Lol. Doesn’t he have more to do?” one person quipped.
Turns out all it takes to save a sinking restaurant chain is a logo, an old man in overalls, and a President who thinks he’s America’s ultimate Yelp reviewer.
Marketing experts have called the rebranding blunder a misfire, a flop, a mistake, a severing of the franchise from its roots.
Cracker Barrel saw massive growth in the 1990s but has watched its bottom line slowly sink.
CBS News reported that in 2024, the chain reported revenue of around $3.5 billion, up less than 1% from $3.4 billion the previous year, but its net income fell to $40.9 million. That’s a steep drop from the $99 million it reported in 2023.
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