Overview
Cracker Barrel Homework
No more than 3 pages Cracker Barrel Old Country Store was founded in 1969. The restaurant concept was centered around the idea of building an old country store that met the needs of the traveling public. The vision was to create a place to preserve the ingredients of country life to share with travelers on the road and the families nearby. With a mission of “Pleasing People”, the company is both country store and southern restaurant and now serves over 230 million people each year at over 600 locations. Revenue and profits are generated from each unit; store and restaurant. The brand is grounded in a clear mission of being a home away from home restaurant where everyone is welcome. Many of their customers embrace the original charm of a simpler time and place. Today Cracker Barrel is confronted with flattening revenue growth and foot traffic while several of their competitors are growing. They are challenged by growing their business in a new and changing environment while continuing their tradition of embracing the past and remaining committed to their loyal customers. As part of a strategic plan to refresh their business, Cracker Barrel has recently announced a variety of changes and marketing initiatives to update the brand, create a more modern brand feel, and increase visits by a younger demographic. These have included menu changes, updates to store atmosphere, and a logo change. The logo change has sparked a national controversy, and sales have been negatively impacted as conservative right-leaning customers have publicly boycotted the brand in protest. Please do research on this topic, brand, the logo change, and the ensuing results. Here is an article to begin your research. https://www.today.com/food/restaurants/cracker-barrel-new-logo-fall-menu- rcna225839 Your research should reveal this logo change lasted less than one week as Cracker Barrel quickly changed the logo back to its original. In the process, they communicated a statement that partially read "We thank our guests for sharing your voices and love for Cracker Barrel. We said we would listen, and we have. Our new logo is going away, and our 'Old Timer' will remain. Another article on changing the logo back to its original. https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/cra... After you complete your research to be more familiar with the issues, please answer the following questions:
1. The research should show they changed their logo as part of a larger brand strategy to become more relevant, modern, and successful with a younger demographic. Evaluate Cracker Barrels’ decision to change their logo to something simpler and more modern. Was this the right thing to do at the time to achieve their strategic goals? What could they have done differently? 2. Before a week passes, they announce they are returning to the old logo. Evaluate this decision. Do you agree with it? And what could they have done differently. 3. Foot traffic and sales have been negatively impacted by this decision and its reversal. Clearly customers haven’t been so forgiving. What marketing tactics do you recommend Cracker Barrel use to win back their customers? Give at least two detailed ideas.