Serta, the largest U.S. mattress manufacturer, announced Thursday that it will end its business relationship with Donald Trump, making it just the latest major business to cut ties with the bloviating billionaire since tossing his toupée in the 2016 presidential race on June 16.
The outrage, which spread fast and furious, began when Trump took this stance on immigration, during his campaign announcement speech:
“When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending the best,” he said. “They’re sending people that have lots of problems and they’re bringing those problems. They’re bringing drugs, they’re bringing crime. They’re rapists and some, I assume, are good people, but I speak to border guards and they’re telling us what we’re getting.”
Trump’s announcement speech was so tone-deaf and ignorant that brands, networks and organizations have fled his toxic brand in a remarkably short period of time. NBC severed ties and left the Miss USA pageant without a broadcaster; Reelz TV came in Thursday and picked it up. No word yet on where the pageant will take place, though: Colombia rescinded its petition to host the competition the same day.
The #DumpTrump firestorm continues to rip through Twitter (analytics group Crimson Hexagon declined to pull data in order to stay out of the conversation). Here’s a day-by-day breakdown of Donald’s damaged brand.
Ad position: web_incontent_pos1
June 22
Among the earliest responses to Donald Trump’s presidential announcement comes in the form of a Trump-inspired piñata, created in Mexico and a hit on Twitter.
Ha. This is a basic Donald Trump piñata. Available now in Mexico. Will ship to the United States @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/XahFEOKw7k
— Huracán Güero bichi五 (@VancouverGuero) June 22, 2015
June 25
The Spanish language network Univision becomes the first major company to dump Trump, announcing it will end all business with him, and not air the Miss USA pageant on July 12. Trump responds by slapping the network with a $500 million lawsuit, which a representative for the company told People magazine is “factually false and legally ridiculous.”
June 29
NBC, which has been in business with Trump for more than 10 years, takes fewer than 10 days to sever all ties with the billionaire. In response, Trump says: “If NBC is so weak and so foolish to not understand the serious illegal immigration problem in the United States … then their contract violating closure of Miss Universe/Miss USA will be determined in court.”
Donald’s going to have to pull a lot of overtime juggling all these lawsuits and a campaign.
Ad position: web_incontent_pos2
June 30
The largest Spanish-speaking media company Televisa also calls it quits on its relationship with Trump, saying in a statement that the group “rejects all forms of discrimination, racism and xenophobia.”
The same day, Mexico announces it will no longer be sending contestants to the Miss Universe pageant. Competition hosts Cheryl Burke and Thomas Roberts, judge Emmitt Smith and performers Flo Rida and J Balvin have since dropped out from participating in the pageant as well.
July 1
Macy’s drops Donald Trump’s menswear line from stores, stating that “Macy’s is a company that stands for diversity and inclusion. We have no tolerance for discrimination in any form.” The Trump menswear line has been sold by Macy’s since 2004, and includes items for any budding bigoted businessman: neckties, dress shirts, cufflinks, etc.
The announcement comes after a MoveOn.org petition for Macy’s to sever ties with Trump got more than 700,000 signatures. Donald responded on Twitter with this question:
Interesting that @Macys criticized me but just paid $650,000 in fines for racial profiling. Are they racists?
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 1, 2015
Next, the City of New York gets involved. Trump was collaborating with New York’s Ferry Point to build a golf course. According to NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio, the city is “reviewing” the deal, adding that “hateful language has no place in this city.”
Later that Wednesday, Trump appears on CNN to talk to Don Lemon. During his interview, he makes the argument that all he was doing when he made those Mexico comments was stating the facts, speciously quoting a Fusion article that said 80 percent of Central American migrants in Mexico are raped. Trump defended his statement with this quotable: “Somebody’s doing the raping … Who’s doing the raping?”
July 2
Reelz TV apparently has no problem picking up NBC’s discards, and announces it will air Trump’s upcoming Miss USA pageant. A tired, outdated tradition is saved from the grave; it’s unlikely Trump’s presidential campaign will see the same grace.
Still, Trump’s made it clear he’s not going down easy.
When somebody challenges you unfairly, fight back – be brutal, be tough – don’t take it. It is always important to WIN!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 27, 2015
We MUST have strong borders and stop illegal immigration. Without that we do not have a country. Also, Mexico is killing U.S. on trade. WIN!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 30, 2015
I love the Mexican people, but Mexico is not our friend. They’re killing us at the border and they’re killing us on jobs and trade. FIGHT!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 30, 2015
More in Marketing
In the marketing world, anime is following in the footsteps of gaming
As marketers look to take advantage of anime’s entry into the zeitgeist, they might be wise to observe the parallels between the evolution of anime as a marketing channel and the ways brands have learned to better leverage gaming in recent years.
With the introduction of video ads and e-commerce, Roblox looks to attain platform status
Roblox is expanding into more areas than just ads in 2024. Much like platforms such as Amazon and Facebook have transcended their origins to evolve from their origins as online marketplaces and social media channels, Roblox is in the midst of a transformation into a platform for all elements of users’ virtual lives.
PepsiCo wants to remain a ‘driver of culture’ as it turns to influencers and activations amid rebrand
The soda-maker says it can translate cultural relevance into sales volume.
Ad position: web_bfu