Some Hymie's Deli customers are voting with their wallets after Trump's ad

Marsha Rosenzweig Pincus has long considered Hymie’s Deli a “go-to place,” where she has enjoyed countless meals and picked up food for Jewish holidays since the 1970s.

But after seeing the Republican Jewish Coalition’s recent pro-Donald Trump ad, which was filmed at the Merion Station facility, the 71-year-old retired teacher won’t be dining there anytime soon.

“The content of that advertisement – aimed at women like me, Jewish Main Line women – I found incredibly offensive and condescending,” said Rosenzweig Pincus, a Bryn Mawr Democrat who will vote for Kamala Harris.

‘As if he hadn’t already said publicly that if he loses, it will be because of the Jews” she added. “Trump has already put a target on the back of every Jew who doesn’t vote for him.”

And while Hymie’s owner Louis Barson said neither he nor Hymie’s support Trump, Rosenzweig Pincus said she can’t separate the company from the ad.

Barson, a registered independent, said the ad was shot at the Merion Station deli as a favor to his friend Matthew Brooks, CEO of the Republican Jewish Coalition. Barson says he hasn’t decided yet who he will vote for the presidential elections.

The ad has resulted in political backlash for Hymie’s, with hundreds appearing on social media. Many said they will never patronize the 71-year-old restaurant again. Others say they are more likely to visit after seeing the ad.

With about a week left until the electionthe backlash is a nuanced, hyper-local example of the kind conscious consumerism That has been intensified nationally and is often aimed at large companies or brands.

Jeffrey L. Seltzer, a 59-year-old IT consultant from Nieuwstadpleinsaid he will stop his weekly trips to Hymie’s for soups, cakes, deli meats and meals: “Giving them $100 a week and supporting something I don’t believe in, it just feels wrong.”

Others said the ad had the opposite effect.

Marc Ullman, a 52-year-old Republican from Galloway, N.J., said he would “patronize them more now.” As a small business owner and Trump supporter who sees the former president as more supportive of IsraelUllman agreed with the ad’s message.

So did Judy Kroll, a 58-year-old independent from the Netherlands Bucks County: “I want to go there quickly and get a corned beef sandwich before the election.”

How political boycotts and buycotts affect companies and brands

At one stressful time in a deeply divided nationsome consumers are more picky about the politics of the places they spend money.

It is a form of market conflict that Scott Broetzmann has studied its 2023 customer anger surveysurveying 1,000 American consumers. In a section of the study titled “Customer Incivility,” Broetzmann, president and CEO of Customer Care Measurement & Consulting, and fellow researchers found that on average, three-quarters of participants would express disagreement with a company if its political or social views were inconsistent. one line. with their own. About half of them said a “personal boycott” would be an acceptable response.

Consumers on both sides of the political spectrum have sworn off corporations.

Conservatives are boycotting Bud Light over its partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney And Focus on the Pride displays. Liberals boycotted Hobby Lobby – which happened has advocated for a Christian-led government, among other conservative positions – and Home Depot, that was it co-founded by a billionaire Trump donor.

Chick-fil-A has drawn ire from both sides, first from liberals and then a former CEO spoke out against gay marriage in 2012 and then from conservatives who last year questioned the chain’s diversity, equity and inclusion policies.

But when calls for boycotts are made, other consumers may go out of their way to patronize an establishment in support of its known or perceived politics, Broetzmann said. These countermeasures, sometimes called “buycotts,” can even negate the effect of boycotts.

“Virtue signaling, if you think about it, is a form of marketing,” Broetzmann said. For example, if some consumers associate a company with Trump, “one in two people at least statistically, They could be Trump supporters who are customers of that company.”

At Hymie’s, Barson said the recent political backlash hasn’t hurt the deli’s business.

“My company hasn’t lost a cent,” Barson said Wednesday. “I can’t say whether that’s because new people came in and old people didn’t come.”

“For the most part,” the owner added, “it’s business as usual.”

At the Hampton Food Market in Southampton, Bucks County, co-owner Samuel Nemirovsky has made it a business practice to remain apolitical.

But a few weeks ago, the Eastern European grocer was inadvertently targeted by Trump supporters. The market’s TVs, which play a series of ads put together by an outside company, showed a pro-Harris ad. In a local Facebook group, a customer posted anonymously that he had seen the ad in the store.

The social media backlash was swift and “overwhelmingly against us,” Nemirovsky said. It was not isolated from the internet. In the days that followed, Nemirovsky said, he noticed a drop in sales. Despite explaining the situation to customers and ordering the third-party company to stop playing political ads in his store, he knows some customers have yet to return.

“Our employees don’t see the same faces they’ve always seen,” Nemirovsky said. Meanwhile, two new customers told him they were now patronizing the store because of the advertisement.

How politically engaged consumers decide where to shop

Across the Philadelphia region and across the political spectrum, consumers are taking a range of approaches to navigate the politics of consumerism.

Some said they don’t seek out the opinions of every company they spend money at. But when they hear a company’s position on a political or social issue, it’s hard to ignore.

Politics “is generally not something I think about when I consume goods and services,” Rosenzweig Pincus said. “But if the company goes out of its way to draw attention to their political beliefs, and if I believe that is detrimental to my well-being, then I will stop visiting the establishment.”

It’s been years since Ullman, the South Jersey Republican, said he enjoyed a pint of Ben & Jerry’s. the ice cream company that advocates ‘progressive social change’,” the website said.

Janine Heggs, a 28-year-old cloud engineer from Pennsauken, said she avoids brands like Hobby Lobby – whose founder has donated to Trump’s pre-emptive ‘Stop the Steal’ 2.0 effortaccording to the Wall Street Journal – and Goya, which is run by a CEO who repeated false claims that the former president won the 2020 election.

“They’re pretty outspoken in their support for Trump, and that doesn’t appeal to me,” Heggs said.

Several consumers said their political awareness depends on shopping conditions. For example, if two stores selling the same items are equally convenient, they can choose based on the known or perceived policies of the companies. But at other times, they might shop at the store that’s closer or more on their mind.

“I try to choose wisely, but I’m not like, ‘Oh, boycott that’ or ‘I’ll never go to Home Depot,'” said Seltzer, the Newtown Square Democrat. But “if I think about it, I’ll go to Lowe’s.”

A Trump voter can still love Bruce Springsteen

Other consumers try to compartmentalize politics and their daily shopping habits.

Lori DiGioia, a patient care representative from West Chester, said she doesn’t pay much attention to the positions of corporations and businesses. The 60-year-old Republican, who is voting for Trump, couldn’t name a liberal or Democratic company she wouldn’t support.

“I mainly look at the prices,” she said. “I want to save money.”

Kroll, the Trump voter from Bucks County, likes Bruce Springsteenthat he has become in his decades-long career increasingly loudly in support of the Democrats. In a recent video endorsing Harris: Springsteen called Trump “the most dangerous presidential candidate in my lifetime.”

Although Kroll disagrees with his assessment, politics hasn’t stopped her from talking about the rocker and spending money on his concerts, music and merchandise. She has spent thousands of dollars in the past six months alone to see Springsteen in Philadelphia, Asbury ParkNJ, and Syracuse, NY

“People told me that if I don’t share his views, I don’t have to listen to him,” she said. “Well, I say there’s more to his music than just politics.”

In East PassyunkMegan Walsh, a 25-year-old Democrat, said she also largely puts politics aside when deciding where to spend her money.

Walsh, who works in pharmaceutical marketing, has already cast her vote for Harris, saying “Trump should never come within 100 miles of the White House.”

But when the man behind the counter at her favorite sandwich shop recently wore a Trump shirt, she didn’t let it deter her.

Internally I thought, ‘We’re not going to watch that because he makes a great pork chop sandwich,'” Walsh said. “And I will trust him with that.”