Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Felss Masino and a redesigned logo that the restaurant chain scrapped after a failed brand refresh in August 2025.

By Chris Spiker From Daily Voice

Cracker Barrel's top executive explained why the restaurant chain briefly changed its logo before scrapping it after conservatives blasted the brand refresh as "woke."

CEO Julie Felss Masino addressed the controversy publicly at the 13D Monitor Active-Passive Investor Summit in New York City on Tuesday, Oct. 22, The Wall Street Journal reported. Her comments came nearly two months after the Tennessee-based company abandoned its plans to use a redesigned logo without its Uncle Herschel mascot.

Masino, a former Starbucks and Taco Bell executive, said the short-lived logo change was about visibility, not ideology.

"Part of this transformation is setting up success for the long term," she said.

Masino also said Cracker Barrel dropped its familiar image of a man in overalls leaning against a barrel to make the company's name easier to read on highway billboards.

Wikimedia Commons - Retail Thriller

Right-wing influencers and fans loudly criticized the change, making the chain one of the most recent companies targeted by the "anti-woke" movement. President Donald Trump even bashed the roadside restaurant staple on social media, telling the company to "Make Cracker Barrel a WINNER again."

Critics also denounced the planned location remodels that featured lighter colors and fewer antiques, which fans said stripped away the brand's country charm. Cracker Barrel scrapped the restaurant makeovers about two weeks after abandoning the redesigned logo.

Shares in Cracker Barrel have fallen about 34% since the start of 2025, including nearly 50% from their yearly high in mid-July. In early October, the company ended its partnership with marketing firm Prophet, which advised the chain on the rebranding.

Cracker Barrel has more than 650 restaurants, employing about 70,000 workers nationwide.