Cracker Barrel CEO Julie Felss Masino was spotted throughout the day on Thursday in Tennessee, marking the first time the executive has been pictured in public since the restaurant chain’s controversial logo change sparked widespread backlash.
The Cracker Barrel chief executive was seen leaving her home in the affluent, suburban Nashville neighborhood of Green Hills on Thursday morning. Green Hills is located a little more than 30 miles west of Cracker Barrel’s headquarters in Lebanon, Tennessee. Photos show Masino driving a gray Mercedes-Benz – trailed by a security guard in a separate car – as she makes her way to Starbucks to pick up some breakfast before work.
Sporting a black shirt, dark gray pants, white sneakers and wearing a fanny pack across her chest, photos show Masino walking away from the coffee chain while carrying two Starbucks drinks and a food item. She is trailed on foot by her security detail, who dons a bright blue shirt.
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Masino arrived at one of the corporate offices of Maple Street Biscuit Company in Brentwood shortly before 9 a.m. on Friday, rather than working from Cracker Barrel’s headquarters in Lebanon. Maple Street Biscuit Company was acquired by Cracker Barrel in October 2019 for $36 million in an all-cash transaction.
As Masino made her way back to her car, FOX Business approached her for an interview, asking questions about the logo change and what’s next for the Southern country-themed chain, but was ignored by the chief executive, who was on the phone. Masino went straight to her vehicle and into her driver’s seat before promptly driving away as her security guard trailed in his car.
Masino has been tight-lipped since unveiling a controversial new Cracker Barrel logo, as has rhe company’s board, that eliminated its long-standing “Old Timer” – a move the company announced this week it was backtracking on.
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Founded in Lebanon, Tennessee, in 1969, Cracker Barrel unveiled its new logo last week as part of its new branding campaign – doing away with the image of a man resting on a barrel in favor of a text-only logo for the first time since 1977. On Tuesday, the company announced that it would drop its new logo and keep the “Old Timer” in place.
The restaurant’s attempt to modernize its logo occurred as the company’s leadership has been working to confront the chain’s declining financial performance. Masino launched a transformation project a year ago aimed at boosting sales and energizing its customer base as the brand faced stagnation. The attempted logo rebrand was part of that effort.
The company’s market value plunged over $100 million in the wake of the rebranding.
Masino joined the restaurant chain as CEO in July 2023 and the company’s board of directors several months later.
FOX Business’ Eric Revell contributed to this report.
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