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Low-Medical t1_iz1at8n wrote

Reply to comment by Previous_Floor in Fortnight is closing after 6 years by lestermagnum

Chick-fil-A is thriving. Patagonia is doing great. People seem to love that Black Rifle Coffee.

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Previous_Floor t1_iz1cnig wrote

Yes, Chick-fil-A is thriving but I'd argue that they would be 2X thriving. I mean, half the country boycotts them.

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ReefaManiack42o t1_iz1lvpf wrote

Your math is off though, cause the majority of Americans don't follow politics/news or vote. So it's more like 25% of the people disagree with them and would boycott them, IF they knew anything about them, but I'm sure a good percentage of that 25% don't even know Chick-fil-A's political stance.

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Previous_Floor t1_iz1x7lh wrote

The bottom line is...

Politically, the nation is divided roughly 50/50.

Any business that expresses strong political views is stupid.

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Low-Medical t1_iz22we4 wrote

Well, I guess that is probably true from a B-school point of view. Unlimited growth is the goal. And any money left on the table = failure. In the case of a company like Patagonia, maybe more conservatives would buy their stuff if they kept quiet about climate change or Bears Ears National Monument. But clearly they made the decision that the loss of potential revenue was worth it. Then again, maybe they made the calculation that not that many conservatives shop there in the first place (preferring Cabela's or whatever), so being vocal about environmental causes would increase loyalty among an already left-leaning customer base. This would actually be interesting stuff for a case-study - do you try to capture the entire market? Or do you focus on a very enthusiastic sector of the market? I think either could be successful, depending on the business.

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Previous_Floor t1_iz1ymj9 wrote

You know why Curt Schilling isn't in the Hall of Fame? It's not because he wasn't good enough. And it's not because he screwed the State of RI with his video game company. It's because you need 75% of the vote to get in, and that's not happening when you shoot your mouth off about politics.

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Previous_Floor t1_iz1elcp wrote

And where would Taylor Swift be today if she hadn't kept silent about her political views when she started in Nashville?

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