Moon 🌙

Yes I can help. I am uniquely qualified because I’m white, an American, and a marketing/branding expert who is based in the southeast, and has worked in the entertainment and restaurant industry for decades. My job is to identify trends in American psychology, buying habits, and demographic shifts so companies can change strategy. I’ve been the brains behind many Fortune 500/100/50 corporate strategies. This is about a feeling of loss in America, particularly among white male Americans. The demographics show that white Americans are going to become the minority sometime in the mid 2040s. White male Americans have historically dominated powerful positions in government, business and science but have been seeing women and minorities come into their spaces more and more, which they see as an existential threat. The recent political movements in America are to try to turn back the clock to when white people were the vast majority, and men ruled the working world. Interestingly, some other male dominated societies and leaders around the world also want to encourage America to adopt this stance. This brand, Cracker Barrel, is HQ in TN and has locations densely across the SE particularly near highways. Their historical customer has been white rural travelers, as it started originally as a cafe gas station gift shop concept. The restaurant is also relatively inexpensive- this catering to a lower income demographic. Walking into the restaurants are like walking back in time, as the physical locations feel like an old country back woods lodge filled with antiques. The brand has a strongly differentiated rural country feel, and a very simple menu, that has been unchanged since the 1960s. The challenge the brand is facing a declining core population over time. The very population they serve. A young new female CEO came in and is trying to figure out the strategy long term, and they recently replaced their Nashville based ad agency with one not as familiar with the brand to determine the strategy. They underestimated the response, and likely should have created a longer term brand shift strategy rather than an “all at once” relaunch, given the climate in America and this brand’s unique positioning in it. Two more aspects fueling it. The ruling political movement in America today excites the base through a strategy called “crisis response,” they always need a crisis to galvanize the base. This fits the bill. Another one is competition. Other struggling rural restaurant brands, like Steak and Shake @SteaknShake lead by a Tehran Iran CEO, have been relentless in fueling this fire because of their need to drive business to their stores, and pointing these brand changes out is one way to get attention and sales. They support the political movement as well. In summary, there is a combination of factors driving the attention and controversy of this iconic American brand @CrackerBarrel Hope that helps 💎✨