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The rise of the “HR female” leader has been disastrous for way too many American companies. The first mess that comes to mind is the Bud Light fiasco. Who could forget when Alissa Heinerscheid, Bud Light’s vice president of marketing, unleashed the Dylan Mulvaney campaign and nearly destroyed the entire brand?
The Guardian:
When Anheuser-Busch InBev, the multinational beer company, promoted Alissa Heinerscheid to vice-president of marketing for Bud Light in July 2022, she became the first female VP in the beer’s 40-year history. “It’s just old white men,” says one former employee of the company leadership. “That’s why we were excited to at least have Alissa in that role.”
In a March 2023 interview with the lifestyle podcast Make Yourself At Home, Heinerscheid spoke of her remit. “I had a really clear job to do when I took over Bud Light, and it was: ‘This brand is in decline, it’s been in a decline for a really long time, and if we do not attract young drinkers to come and drink this brand, there will be no future for Bud Light.’” Part of that involved updating the marketing to be “lighter, brighter” and more inclusive. “Bud Light had […] a brand of fratty, kind of out-of-touch humor,” Heinerscheid said.
Heinerscheid’s answer to declining sales and attracting new young drinkers was to go full trans. Unbelievable.
Needless to say, Heinerscheid was fired.
And then there’s Dana Walden, the top gal at Disney. Under her shaky leadership, the company has struggled, posting a 35 percent drop in profits in 2025 while continuing to pump out one woke flop after another.
Sports Illustrated’s swimsuit issue has also crumbled under the woke leadership of their editor-in-chief, MJ Day, who decided the best way to appeal to men was to add obese women.
They got woke and literally went broke.
Daily Mail:
In the years that followed, the magazine tried to overhaul its image by selecting models of different ethnicities, ages and sizes in a bid to appeal to a younger audience.
In 2020, Valentina Sampaio became the first transgender model to pose for the magazine, and she returned again in 2021. That year, she was also joined by fellow trans model Lenya Bloom.
2021 was also year of firsts, and included the first Filipino model in the magazine, the first Asian-American model, and a 57-year-old woman who was the oldest Rookie ever at the time.
In 2022, Sports Illustrated announced it will only include ads from brands that show a commitment to supporting gender equality and women’s empowerment.
There’s a definite pattern here. Hire woke female leaders, and you may end up watching your profits, reputation, and everything you’ve worked for go straight down the drain.
And one legendary American brand learned that lesson the hard way. Cracker Barrel faced a tsunami of backlash after its female CEO decided to strip away the company’s beloved old branding, including the cozy interior decor and the logo featuring the famous Uncle Herschel, AKA the “Old Timer.”
Take a look. The logo went from warm, familiar tradition to bland, soulless corporate mush. And that was supposed to be progress?
The American people didn’t agree, and they made sure Cracker Barrel knew it.
The backlash became so intense that Cracker Barrel was forced to reverse course and promise it wouldn’t take a woke wrecking ball to the traditions that made the brand beloved in the first place.
BBC:
US restaurant chain Cracker Barrel has abandoned plans to adopt a new logo following fierce backlash.
“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,” the company said in a social media post.
Cracker Barrel received criticism after it unveiled a modern version of its logo which scrapped the “Old Timer” figure.
President Donald Trump, who was among those slamming the rebrand, applauded the reversal, saying: “Congratulations ‘Cracker Barrel’ on changing your logo back to what it was. All of your fans very much appreciate it”.
The new version of the logo, which was unveiled along with a new menu on 19 August, removed the image of a man sitting in a chair and leaning against a barrel – known as the “Old Timer” – and replaced it with an emblem featuring only the chain’s name.
That sparked accusations that the company, known for its Southern-style comfort food and nostalgic atmosphere, was abandoning its roots.
President Trump urged the brand to return to its old logo, and “admit a mistake based on customer response (the ultimate Poll), and manage the company better than ever before”.
Now, Cracker Barrel is making the next logical step. They’re dumping the woke female CEO who caused this mess in the first place and replacing her with a man.
Fox Business:
Cracker Barrel announced on Monday that CEO Julie Masino will step down, effective Aug. 10, and be replaced by David Deno.
Masino will remain with the company in an advisory capacity until Oct. 9.
“Following a robust and thoughtful search process, we are pleased to welcome David as Cracker Barrel’s next CEO,” independent Chairman of the Cracker Barrel Board, Carl Berquist, said in a statement. “He brings decades of experience across the restaurant and retail industries, with a strong track record of leading businesses through growth and a demonstrated commitment to operational excellence, guest experience, and team member engagement.”
“We are confident David is the right leader to continue building on the Cracker Barrel legacy, drive further positive momentum operationally and financially, and create sustainable value for our shareholders,” Berquist continued.
This decision will likely make a lot of Cracker Barrel fans happy. As long as this new CEO doesn’t turn the “Old Timer” into a trans, everything should be okay.
We’ll leave you with this meme. It really puts the entire Cracker Barrel fiasco into perspective.
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