Former Levi's executive says that companies need to focus on business, not on politics

Former Levi's Brand President Jennifer Sey said that even in 2023, big corporations seem to be focusing more on politics than on having good business models. 

"I would like to say that there are signs and I am hopeful that things will change," Sey told the "Just the News, No Noise" show on Tuesday. "Because I think it's a tough business environment. The fact is corporations have a fiduciary responsibility to grow revenues and turn a profit. All of this other stuff is a distraction, and it turns consumers off."

Sey spent 23 years at Levi's, where she worked her way up from an entry-level marketing assistant to brand president. She was in line to be CEO until she emerged as an outspoken critic of the COVID school shutdowns in 2020. 

Sey referenced how the FTX debacle is an example that concerns her, which shows that many corporations won't stop being woke anytime soon. 

"FTX is the best example with Sam Bankman-Fried," she said. "He took these woke stances to avoid any scrutiny and he did it so that people would like him, all the while he was stealing money. So I think things will change but I don't see any clear signs yet."

In her book, "Levi's Unbuttoned: The Woke Mob Took My Job but Gave Me My Voice," Sey says that speaking out against the school closures resulted in Levi's employees calling her "anti-trans," "anti-fat" and "racist." By January 2022, she was told there was no longer a place for her at the company.