Levi Strauss, the American denim icon whose brand identity is woven into the image of the United States itself, has issued a warning that goes far beyond retail sales. In a filing with Britain’s national business registry, the company cited “rising anti-Americanism” abroad, noting that the backlash against President Trump’s tariffs and foreign policy is beginning to change consumer behavior in ways that could cost U.S. companies billions.
This is not just about denim. McDonald’s has reported declining sales in Europe and Canada, Jack Daniels said Canadian boycotts cut sales by 62 percent last quarter, and surveys show double-digit increases in Europeans and Canadians planning to avoid American products altogether. What began as protests against tariffs is now spreading into what economists call “demand risk,” where symbolic boycotts harden into lasting barriers like new tariffs, local-content rules, labeling requirements, and public procurement bans that favor domestic producers.
Marketing experts warn that companies built on Americana, like Levi’s and Coca-Cola, face the highest risks because their products are easily substituted and their identities are tightly bound to the United States. As Alan Bradshaw of Royal Holloway University told Newsweek, Levi’s global image as a symbol of American culture makes it an obvious target for consumers looking to register disapproval of U.S. policies.
The problem is compounded by economic realities. International students contribute billions to U.S. universities. Foreign labor keeps industries from agriculture to elder care afloat. American brands dominate consumer markets abroad. Tariffs and combative trade policies threaten all of it by pushing allies and trading partners toward self-reliance and local alternatives.
Some companies may try to blunt the damage by highlighting local manufacturing ties or publicly distancing themselves from U.S. policies. But experts warn that this approach carries political risks at home, where brands could face backlash from American consumers who support the administration’s agenda. And with a federal court ruling now challenging Trump’s use of emergency powers to impose many tariffs, the economic and political uncertainty is only growing.
The broader implication is clear: as international anger hardens into economic nationalism abroad, U.S. companies could face not just short-term boycotts but long-term structural disadvantages in markets they once dominated. What started as tariffs and trade disputes may end with the unraveling of America’s soft power in the global marketplace. Go beyond the headlines…
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