Cracker Barrel Faces Pushback Over New Logo

by Tanya Gazdik , Yesterday

Critics are coming for Cracker Barrel’s new simplified logo, which removes the image of a man leaning against a barrel and the phrase “old country store.”

“The identity refresh also includes new TV commercials, a redesigned menu and several new fall-themed foods, part of a larger $700 million transformation plan to shake off its stodgy image and lure in new diners,” according to CNN Business.

Cracker Barrel says the refresh will still maintain the brand’s “rich history of country hospitality” and that the colors in the logo were inspired by the chain’s scrambled eggs and biscuits.

“But within 48 hours, the redesign backlash was raging online, with commenters on both sides using it as a cudgel,” according to The Washington Post.

Some social media users 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,” according to CNBC.

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.”

Cracker Barrel shares fell sharply Thursday before recovering somewhat, ending the day at $54.80, down nearly 7.2%.

Cracker Barrel told USA Today its "values haven't changed, and the heart and soul of Cracker Barrel haven’t changed” and that “this fifth evolution of the brand’s logo, which works across digital platforms as well as billboards and roadside signs, is a call-back to the original and rooted even more in the iconic barrel shape and word mark that started it all back in 1969.”

Even other brands got in on the criticism.

“Steak 'n Shake has taken aim at Cracker Barrel, accusing the Southern country-themed chain of erasing its heritage and identity with its controversial new logo,” according to Fox Business News.

The Indianapolis-based burger chain took to X on Thursday to slam Cracker Barrel for allegedly abandoning its roots.

“Sometimes, people want to change things just to put their own personality on things,” Steak 'n Shake posted on X on Thursday, along with an image of part of the old Cracker Barrel logo. "At [Cracker Barrel], their goal is to just delete the personality altogether. Hence, the elimination of the 'old-timer’ from the signage."

design, qsr, restaurants

8 comments about "Cracker Barrel Faces Pushback Over New Logo".

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Marcelo Salup from Iffective LLC, August 22, 2025 at 8:40 a.m.
1. No one cares. The people who go will keep going. The people who tried it and don't go will continue not going. People don't go because of logos, they go for the mix of ambiance, food and prices.

2. We have turned into a rabidly stupid country, it seems, when a simple logo change brings forth the son the president, radicalizes the "right" and the new logo is accused of being "woke". Seriously, it seems that RFK Jr. was right and something in the water rots people brains.

3. Jaguar is celebrating that all the armchair and Monday morning quarterbacks moved on to something else.
Reply

Millie Katzen from Cumulus, August 22, 2025 at 9:07 a.m.

I polietly disagree Marcelo, this is not a "woke" idea. This reminds me of the "new coke" "old coke" of the 1990's.
Updating a well established brand logo is dangerous, you will always alientate a wide variety of your consumers. I love that they are updating the store and the menu, maybe tweak the logo, but don't throw evrything away from a well established brand.

M Gingrich from GI, August 22, 2025 at 10:17 a.m.

LOL to Marcelo's Jaguar comment - too true! There's nothing woke about it, but in the end the logo change is objectively a super-boring downgrade from the old, and will be a colossal rebranding waste of money changing out signage, etc..

Artie White from Zoom Media Corp, August 22, 2025 at 11:41 a.m.

When it comes to advertising, if there's one thing the right and left have in common, its their talent for performative outrage over complete non-issues.

Marcelo Salup from Iffective LLC replied, August 22, 2025 at 12:18 p.m.

I don't know exactly what you are politely disagreeing with.

The whole issue of the logo has become political, whether you and I like or not (in my case, not); you've got one of the Trump boys already making stupid pronouncements about wokeness; you already have dozens of poobahs in LinkedIn making pronouncements AND comments in their posts already going the "woke" direction.

My one point was "this is not political", the fact that such a bland logo change has been made political seems, IMHO, a sign of the stupidization of at least some parts of the country.

My other point is that no one cares.

BTW, just so we are clear, because I worked on the Coca Cola account for years and was part of the team that launched Diet Coke in Mexico. New Coke was not a log retweak, it was a completely new product. A failed completely new product, for sure, but a totally new product.

Marcelo Salup from Iffective LLC replied, August 22, 2025 at 12:19 p.m.

Oh, for sure, the new logo looks like it was done on Canvas using a free account.

Marcelo Salup from Iffective LLC replied, August 22, 2025 at 12:22 p.m.

LOL. I think it extends beyond that Artie.

LinkedIn, the Facebook for those who think they're grown ups, has convinced a bunch of people that they ought to post a lot to build a "professional brand" and establish "authority" so they take to these logo changes (which would normally be obscure footnotes in the history of marketing) like piranhas to a pig.

And just to drive home the point, not one of the poobahs has done any customer research to see if they care.

So it's performative crap on the right, performative crap on the left and performative crap on the echo chamber that is LinkedIn

Ronald Kurtz from American Affluence Research Center replied, August 22, 2025 at 12:33 p.m.

Steak 'n Shake (who has no business speculating on the change and critisizing it) is right that "Sometimes, people want to change things just to put their own personality on things". Look at how Trump is marking territory like a dog (gold decor etc. at White House and changes at Kennedy Center and Smithsonian among others).