Key points
- Jack Daniel’s sales plunge in Canada
- Anti-American sentiment hurts fast food
- Levi’s, Beyond Meat flag business risks
ISLAMABAD: What began as trade disputes is now morphing into a consumer backlash, with boycotts, falling sales, and shifting loyalties threatening quintessentially American companies.
In Canada, sales of Jack Daniel’s plunged 62 per cent in a single quarter amid a moratorium on US spirits, while denim giant Levi’s warned investors that consumers might increasingly turn away from US products.
Global anti-Americanism spiked sharply after Trump’s tariff announcements, leading to ‘steep drops in purchasing consideration’ for US brands. Even companies like Beyond Meat have flagged anti-Americanism as a business risk in their filings, Newsweek reported.
Fast-food giants are also on alert. Yum Brands, the parent of KFC and Taco Bell, is monitoring potential fallout, while McDonald’s acknowledges an 8- to 10-point jump in anti-American sentiment in markets such as Northern Europe and Canada.
Economic self-sufficiency gaining
With calls for economic self-sufficiency gaining traction in India and boycotts spreading in Canada, experts warn that this wave of consumer resistance could become a major headwind—not just for brands but for the broader US economy.
McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski admits that ‘the aura around America has dimmed,’ as some of the world’s most iconic brands—from Levi’s to Jack Daniel’s—report mounting pressure overseas due to rising anti-American sentiment linked to President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
